Luke is joined by Andrew Hastie MP, Liberal Member for Canning & Shadow Minister for Defence, to discuss his response to Labor’s Defense Strategic Update which he criticises for being a strategic doublespeak, as the government is delaying the release of a national strategy document until 2024 while claiming to increase defense spending over the medium term and next decade.

This delay and lack of increase in the defense budget is seen as a fundamental lack of seriousness about the strategic challenges faced by the nation.

Furthermore, the government’s decision to fund the DSR recommendations through offsets is cannibalizing the capability of the defense forces, resulting in the degradation of land power and important programs like Land 400 Phase 3 and the Infantry Fighting Vehicle program being cut.

This means that our troops will have less protection in close combat, and the cuts today will degrade the capability to provide security to assets and forces.

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