Former Environment Minister Peter Garrett Leads Crowd-Funded Inquiry into Aukus Submarine Deal
A crowd-funded independent inquiry, headed by former Environment Minister Peter Garrett, will scrutinise Australia's AUSD#368bn Aukus submarine deal. This agreement, the country's most expensive defence project, will see Australia acquire second-hand US nuclear-powered submarines.
Mr Garrett, who served as Environment Minister from 2007 to 2010, stated that an independent review of the pact was "long overdue". He contended that the opportunity for "question, debate and decide has been taken out of the hands of the parliament and the people".
Inquiry Commissioners and Scope
The inquiry panel includes Admiral Chris Barrie, former chief of the Australian Defence Force; Carmen Lawrence, a former Premier of Western Australia; and Karen Lester, whose father suffered blindness from British nuclear tests in Australia during the 1950s. Public hearings are scheduled, with a report expected in October.
Independent Members of Parliament, David Pocock and Andrew Wilkie, have publicly endorsed the review, organised by the non-profit Australian Peace and Security Forum. Supporters also comprise former politicians, retired military and naval officers, human rights lawyers, and union leaders.
A spokesperson for Prime Minister Anthony Albanese indicated the government's welcome for "appropriate oversight and transparency" regarding the submarine deal. The five-month inquiry will assess whether acquiring nuclear-powered attack submarines genuinely enhances Australian security and its regional standing. It will also examine the practicalities of nuclear waste storage, potential impacts on sovereignty, and the deal's ramifications for Australia's relationship with China, its primary trading partner.
The Aukus agreement, initially announced in September 2021, is widely perceived as a strategy to counter China's expanding presence in the Indo-Pacific region and its role in disputes within territories such as the South China Sea. China condemned the agreement as "extremely irresponsible" upon its announcement.
Recently, the Australian government revised the deal, confirming the purchase of three second-hand US submarines, a modification from the initial agreement that included at least one new vessel. From 2027, the arrangement permits both the US and UK to base a limited number of nuclear submarines in Perth, Western Australia. Both the UK and US conducted reviews of the pact in 2024.
