DEFENCE:

The head of procurement for the Royal Australian Navy (RAN) says plans by the Albanese Government to rein in wasteful spending and cost blowouts in defence contracts are long overdue.

Admiral Quinton McHale, (main picture) said he could not understand why the current government and previous Coalition administrations had not acted sooner to tackle the problem.

Admiral McHale was speaking prior to an appearance today at the National Press Club in Canberra by Defence Industry Minister, Pat Conroy, who will mount a defence of the AUKUS pact as well as signal steps to tackle waste in defence purchasing. (below)

“Speaking in terms of RAN procurement contracts, I can say reforms are long, long overdue,” Admiral McHale said.

“I’ve been in my job now as head of procurement for the RAN for decades. I just forget exactly how many decades because I’ve never been good with numbers.

“But I was promoted to this job regardless of that and I’ve been responsible for many, many cost blowouts despite openly confessing my role and responsibility to successive governments and ministers.”

Admiral McHale cited as an example the project to purchase new Hunter Class frigates for the RAN.

“I’ve seen the cost of the frigate contract rise from an original $35 billion for nine frigates in 2017, then to $45 billion, so now it sits at $65 billion, plus we’ve had to cut the order from nine to just six, and we don’t get the first one until the 2030s,” he said.

“That’s all my doing and I’ve told minister after minister as much. Yet I’m still in my job. Go figure.”

Admiral McHale said when the first cost increase occurred he willingly revealed he had been entirely to blame.

“I went to the minister at the time, I can’t remember who it was because I’m also no good at names,” he explained.

“He said to me: ‘I want to know who’s responsible for this massive frigate overspend.’

“Immediately I was able to say that the responsibility was all mine. In fact my exact words to him were: ‘I, I, sir.’

“I didn’t think I could make it any clearer than that but the Minister didn’t seem to be too bothered so he kept me in my job.

“In fact after that debacle I was emboldened and now I really don’t care what the cost of any bit of RAN kit costs and now I always apply the frigate model.

“From that day on when it comes to budgeting I just say: ‘It’s only taxpayers’ dosh so frig it!’,” he said.

Admiral McHale said he would be interested to hear Minister Conroy’s speech as it relates to AUKUS.

“That’s because I’m also in charge of procuring the new AUKUS nuclear submarines,” he said. “If you think I’ve fucked up the Hunter frigates, you ain’t seen nothing yet.”

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