Speeches

Australia India Defence Industry Roundtable

Good afternoon and thank you for that introduction. It is a real honour to be here today in my role as Australia’s Assistant Minister for Defence to represent my country, and to build closer ties with yours.  I want to begin by acknowledging the traditional custodians of the land we are…

Australia India Defence Conclave

I want to begin by acknowledging the Ngunnawal people, the traditional custodians of the Australian Capital Territory, and recognise Elders past, present and emerging. It’s a pleasure to join you for the Australia India Defence Conclave and speak to pre-eminent minds in the Australia-India…

Opening of the Vuvale Maritime Essential Services Centre

Can I start by acknowledging the traditional owners of the land on which we meet and honour them. And can I also acknowledge the traditional chiefs, pay my respects, and thank everyone for the beautiful welcome that we received this morning. The culture and custom that was placed on display is not…

International Astronautical Congress - QUAD Nations Security Dialogue

Good morning. It is my pleasure to be able to welcome you all to the harbour city and represent the Albanese Government here today, which has a proud track record when it comes to innovation in building our space capabilities. I’d like to begin by acknowledging the traditional owners of the land…

Remarks on the 50th anniversary of Papua New Guinea independence

In the life of one man or one woman, 50 years is a long time. But in the life of a nation, it is just the beginning.  And because 50 years sits within the span of the life of one man or one woman, there are people here today who were here on that day — when the Australian flag was lowered for…

Royal Commission into Defence and Veteran Suicide

People are our most important Australian Defence capability.  The resilience, dedication and professionalism of the Defence and veteran community underpin our national security.  We want Australians to be attracted to serving our nation in our Australian Defence Force, and confident that…

Keynote, Hunter Defence Conference

The Hunter Defence Conference is one of the first events to go into my calendar each year. But I know the work of the Hunter Defence Taskforce isn’t just limited to this one event… …it’s a year round endeavour, supporting the more than 10,000 people in the Hunter who work for Defence or defence…

Pac Pacific Hotel, Perth

I begin by acknowledging the traditional owners of the land, the Whadjuk Nyoongar people, and pay my respects to their Elders, past and present.  I also pay my respects to all our serving personnel, those that have served and the families who support them. Distinguished guests,  A special…

Address to the Queensland Media Club 'Delivering Australia's Defence Capability'

I begin by acknowledging the traditional owners of the land on which we meet today and pay my respects to their Elders, past, present and emerging. As the Minister for Defence Industry, I also pay my respects to Aboriginal and Torres Strait Islander men and women who have served our nation in the…

HMAS Arafura Commissioning

I thank the Whadjuk Elders for their Welcome to Country, and acknowledge the Whadjuk people as the traditional owners of the greater Fremantle/Walyalup area.  I also acknowledge all those who have served, or continue to serve our nation in uniform, and the families who support them who join us…

Address to the Australia India Institute Trilateral Maritime Security Dialogue

It is a pleasure to join you this morning for this Trilateral Maritime Security Dialogue, and to speak to you on behalf of the Deputy Prime Minister and Minister for Defence. It gives me an opportunity to reconnect with my former parliamentary colleague Lisa Singh, now doing such important work…

Defending Australia 2025 Summit

Can I acknowledge both The Australian and The Adelaide Advertiser, and thank Michelle Gemma for the contributions you've made in putting on today.  It really is an annual event now, which is very important in the national discourse around defence policy.  I know that for a participant in…