Defence Minister Peter Dutton has ruled out a “third-class of submarine” following concerns that Australia could be short-handed and face a military capability gap before the arrival of nuclear-powered submarines under the AUKUS agreement by 2040.
Dutton, of the governing centre-right Coalition, made the comments during the Defence Debate with shadow defence spokesperson Brendan O’Connor at the National Press Club in Canberra.
“We don’t want a third class of submarines,” he told reporters on May 5. “I know that some commentators continue to write this (but) the clearest advice I had in relation to our discussions about whether we should go with the nuclear submarines came from the Chief of the Defence Force, the Chief of Navy, and the Vice Chief of the Defence Force to not go with the third platform.”
Dutton said cost was not the only problem and that buying “off the shelf” submarines was unrealistic.
This is despite the idea being heavily promoted by a former naval officer and now-independent Senator Rex Patrick.
“I want someone to explain to me where the shelf is,” he said. “I don’t know where the submarine shelf is”
“If there is a used car yard down the road where there’s an 86-model submarine for sale that nobody else has acquired. I'd be down there in a heartbeat, but it’s not the reality. Let’s stick to the facts,” he added.
The arrival of nuclear-powered submarines for Australia under the AUKUS agreement would likely be in 2040, an unsuitable timeframe considering the potential retirement of the existing fleet of Collins-class submarines, and amid the current threat posed by the Chinese Communist Party (CCP) in the South China Sea and now the Solomon Islands.
Dutton said the current fleet of six Collins-class diesel-electric powered submarines was a potent warship on par with U.S. and UK vessels.
A point the shadow defence spokesperson agreed with.
“I would agree with Peter (Dutton) that Collins-class submarines are very, very capable boats, and to that extent, we should be happy that we’ve got them in the water,” he said. “If we could bring forward delivery of the nuclear-propelled submarines that would be a very good thing.”
Both MPs agreed that current supply chain constraints limited any chance of buying existing submarine models.
“There are constraints within the supply chains in both the U.S. and the UK. That’s the reality,” Dutton said, adding that nations were all watching Beijing’s military build-up and maximising their military construction in response.
O’Connor said that even if Australia could buy “off the shelf” submarines the manpower would not be available.
“My view on defence assets across the board is that ideally, you manufacture them here because that’s a defence asset in itself—a sovereign capability.
“If you think about what’s been delivered to Ukraine at the moment, which has been remarkable and more needs to be done, but that leads to shortages elsewhere.”
