[Typhoon]

The Greens, while they seem to have been critisised above for not having a defence policy actually seems to have the most sensible policy stances for Australia. More transparency, regional stability, goverment transparency with better oversight and a desire for smarter defence spending. Few details on how to move forward though with the problems in procurement or the industry. The plus point I could see with Labour was the desire for better engagement with regional powers including China, that and they seem to have more of a grip on the details and a desire for reforms. The Coalition seems to boil down to more spending but its difficult to pick out how that money would be spent or better spent.

The problem for Australian defence is that it cannot spend its way out of the problems that it faces, for one it does not have enough money to do so and any attempt to do so would be undermined by the problems in its own defence industry and those it relies on (the US). I remmeber taking a stance that Australia needs a larger fleet in another topic, and I stick by that, however it seems clear that Australia first needs to develop a clear strategy on how it can move forward on supply. At the moment reform of the industry appears more important than executing a large program with high spending that will probably end up being wasted. None of the options presented really seem to cover this.