Cost blowouts have reached billions of dollars in a defence program to acquire Joint Strike Fighters while delays for other projects have reached up to 10 years, newly released figures from the federal government reveal.
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The new figures detail the $6.5 billion in budget increases, and about 97 years' worth of delays, for troubled projects to acquire military equipment.
Defence Minister Richard Marles on Monday absolved his department of blame and pinned the cumulative delays and cost blowouts on the previous government, labelling it one of the worst in the nation's history for acquiring military hardware.
His predecessor in the ministry, and now Opposition Leader, Peter Dutton shrugged off the criticism as "comical", and defended the Coalition's record saying it had grown defence spending.
Newly-released details about the defence project delays and blowouts show the F-35A Joint Strike Fighter program is $2.36 billion over the original budget.
A program to acquire a maritime patrol and response aircraft system to support P-8A Poseidon aircraft is running $1.79 billion over budget and is more than six years late.
The multi-role helicopter program is a decade behind schedule while the design and construction of Hunter Class frigates is four years late.
Programs to acquire Offshore Patrol Vessels and the Cape Class Patrol Boat are each a year behind schedule.
Budget variations include real cost increases, variations due to changes of scope or transfer between projects, price indexation and exchange rate changes.
Mr Marles laid the blame wholly on the previous government, saying it had set the wrong culture, neglected programs and provided poor leadership.
"This is not the fault of the Department of Defence, this is not the fault of Australian defence industry," he said.
"They are fantastic and do a wonderful job in serving the national interest. What we have seen is a complete failure of leadership by the former Coalition government and we intend to rectify that.
"We're really confident that with a change of culture, where our focus is not on press releases and demanding of the department to produce press releases on a daily basis, but actually, our focus is on the outcome of projects, the delivery of capability, that sends a message right from the top."
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Mr Dutton dismissed the criticisms as "laughable" and said the Coalition had grown defence spending to more than 2 per cent of the nation's economy and sealed the AUKUS partnership.
Mr Marles promised several changes - including monthly updates to ministers on projects of concern, and an independent project management office - to tighten controls against cost blowouts and delays.
Australian National University defence expert John Blaxland said while it was understandable that Mr Marles had drawn attention to the troubled defence projects, problems with Australia's military purchases predated the previous Coalition government.
He called for a "revolution" in the Defence Department's approach to buying military hardware, saying its focus on advanced technology and bespoke designs was more suited to the less precarious geopolitical environment that preceded China's rise.
"We've got a capability acquisition process designed for the good old years at the end of the Cold War," Professor Blaxland said.