Media Release

KENNEDY MP, Bob Katter has called on the Federal Government to support the establishment of a defence base in Mount Isa, labelling the bid a “strategic defence move”.

The call comes as it was revealed north Queensland will receive only 10 per cent of the $31 billion allocated to defence facilities over the next ten years.

Mr Katter said, the government should strongly consider a new Battalion and army base in Mount Isa, inland fuel reserves, an ethanol and bio-diesel mandate for defence vehicles, more missiles and unmanned combat drones.

“We welcome the Federal Government spending $31billion on defence and we hope the ordinance capabilities of the army are drastically increased,” he said.

“But having said that, our missile capacity is negligible and the next war will be about missiles. We are in the exact same position we were in before Pearl Harbour. Australia had a dozen Beaufort fighter planes, 28 Wirraway trainer planes with machine guns screwed onto their wings; while the Japanese had 50,000 war planes. Our missile capacity will have to be massively increased.”

Mr Katter said the size of the Australian Defence Force needed to be doubled with a new battalion based in Mount Isa.

“It really is a perfect location as you can access the Gulf and it will work as a rear defence for the Australian and US defence personnel and infrastructure based in Darwin,” he said.

“But the fuel issue is the most pressing problem for Australia’s defence. At the moment we have one months fuel supply, and the Government’s plan to build storage in the United States clearly won’t help if trade and shipping routes are cut-off.

“It is absolutely imperative that there be two giant oil refineries built, and you don’t want them anywhere near a big city, you want them inland. You also need a 10% ethanol mandate, and a 5% bio-diesel mandate, on all appropriate defence and civilian vehicles. It means you will have around 100 to 200 bio-diesel and ethanol refineries in Australia.”

Mr Katter said it was imperative that the Federal Government understood that Australians wanted to see action on the ground as fast as is humanly possible.

“This Country is sick and tired of ‘going-to-dos’, you’ve made it so complex for us to do anything it is almost the law of the land that people act with a ‘going-to-do’ mindset.”
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