Federal Member for Capricornia Michelle Landry and Senator Matthew Canavan has welcomed the commitment made by the Coalition Government to grow the number of ADF personnel by 30 per cent by 2040, taking the total permanent ADF to almost 80,000 personnel.
Overall, Defence’s entire permanent workforce will increase to over 101,000 by 2040, increasing 18,500 over baseline growth already agreed in the 2020 Force Structure Plan.
The number of ADF personnel will increase in every state and territory with a particular focus on capabilities associated with our trilateral security partnership between Australia, the United Kingdom and the United States (AUKUS).
Federal Member for Capricornia Michelle Landry said that her and Senator Matthew Canavan have previously written to, and met with, Minister for Defence Peter Dutton regarding the location of the Australian Defence Force armoured personnel carriers currently at Enoggera in Brisbane.
“We both support a permanently based military presence in Rockhampton and the Central Queensland region for further economic opportunities, practical training opportunities, and as a prudent cost-saving measure,” Ms Landry said.
“When the expansion of the Shoalwater Bay Training Area has concluded, we will be required to look ahead for more opportunities to build the capability of local businesses further.
“We are seeking specific consideration to move armoured cavalry units currently based in Brisbane to the Central Queensland region. Alternatively, the relocation of an existing battalion to Central Queensland or the establishment of a new battalion in Central Queensland deserves to be considered.”
Senator Matthew Canavan said Minister Dutton’s announcement could hold opportunities for Central Queensland.
“And with troop numbers set to increase under Minister Dutton’s announcement we’ll be advocating for a battalion to be based in Central Queensland, and it would make sense to bring up the Armoured Cavalry from Enoggerra,” Senator Canavan said.
“The cost of transporting the armoured cavalry from the Enoggera to Shoalwater Bay each year is costing $6 million a year, those funds would be better put to use on more equipment and personnel.
“Considering this hardware isn’t used anywhere but Shoalwater Bay we should be looking at housing it in Rockhampton, and look at having a Battalion based in Central Queensland to ensure that the military is giving back to the region which houses on of their training areas.”
