Mining magnate Gina Rinehart's call to significantly increase Australia's defence spending has not found immediate support from either of the major parties.
Australia's richest woman called on the federal government to boost defence spending to 5 per cent of gross domestic product (GDP) while speaking at a sunset vigil outside the Sydney Opera House on Thursday — the eve of Anzac Day. Rinehart also said Australia should focus more on building defence equipment locally.
Her comments come after the Coalition's recent election pledge to grow defence spending to 3 per cent by 2034-35. Labor plans to increase spending to 2.35 per cent over the same period, up from about 2 per cent currently.
But Rinehart's proposal appears to have fallen flat with the Labor and Liberal parties, with Labor frontbencher Jason Clare and deputy Liberal leader Sussan Ley both declining to back the suggestion when asked about it during an interview on the Seven network's Sunrise program on Friday.
"The investments that we make in our defence force and in the defence of Australia are very, very important. But I don’t want to get into the politics of that today," Clare told Sunrise.
"I think the last thing that Australians want to see this morning is Sussan and myself going tit for tat talking about this, or getting involved in some sort of political fight. I think that’d be really disrespectful."
Clare added that defence manufacturing was already being expanded but did not elaborate.
Ley didn't back Rinehart's suggestion either and instead reiterated the Coalition's proposal while taking a swipe at Labor.
"We agree with the prime minister that we live in the most complex geo-strategic circumstances since World War Two," she said.
"But respectfully, it's not enough to state that without taking action, and our plan [is] to increase defence spending to 3 per cent in the next decade."
The Coalition's pledge comes against the backdrop of United States President Donald Trump calling for NATO members to lift their defence budgets to 3 per cent of GDP. Australia is not a NATO member, but it is classed as one of the military alliance's "enhanced opportunities partners".
When quizzed by reporters earlier this week, Opposition leader Peter Dutton refrained from stating Trump's push had informed the Coalition's policy.
It remains unclear exactly where the Coalition's extra defence spending would go, but Dutton said drones, guided weapons, munitions and cyber capabilities are all on the Coalition's wish list.
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