PUBLIC CONTRACTS – AUSTRALIA

Australia wrote to Naval Group noting progress on submarines a week before contract was cancelled

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Original article by Daniel Hurst
The Guardian Australia – Page: Online : 22-Dec-21

The federal government’s decision to terminate a contract to buy French-designed conventional submarines has attracted renewed scrutiny. It has been revealed that the Department of Defence sent a three-page letter to Naval Group in early September in which it noted the successful completion of one of the six conditions for the government to move to the next stage of the $90bn project. The letter was sent just eight days before the government cancelled Naval Group’s contract and agreed to buy nuclear-powered submarines under a new defence alliance with the US and the UK.

CORPORATES
AUSTRALIA. DEPT OF DEFENCE, NAVAL GROUP

PM sinks Macron’s subs lie

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Original article by Geoff Chambers
The Australian – Page: 1 & 4 : 2-Nov-21

Prime Minister Scott Morrison has responded to the latest furore over the decision to cancel Naval Group’s $90bn submarines contract. French President Emmanuel Macron has accused Morrison of lying about both the submarines contract and Australia’s decision to establish the AUKUS alliance. Morrison says he did not lie to Macron and informed him in mid-June that Australia had concerns about the Naval Group project and was looking at alternative submarines. Morrison says the decision to cancel the contract was made in the national interest. The federal government attempted to inform Macron of the decision two days before the AUKUS deal was announced, but Macron advised that he was not available to take a call from Morrison.

CORPORATES
AUSTRALIA. DEPT OF THE PRIME MINISTER AND CABINET, NAVAL GROUP

France says Australia’s $90b submarine deal cancellation is a stab in the back

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Original article by Jack Hawke
abc.net.au – Page: Online : 17-Sep-21

Prime Minister Scott Morrison has defended the federal government’s decision to cancel the submarine contract with France-based Naval Group. He has argued that decisions must be made in the best interests of national security, and stressed that France is still an important partner in the Pacific region. However, France’s Foreign Minister Jean-Yves Le Drian has criticised the decision to ditch the contract in favour of nuclear-powered submarines, arguing that the relationship of trust between the two nations has been broken.

CORPORATES
AUSTRALIA. DEPT OF THE PRIME MINISTER AND CABINET, NAVAL GROUP

Australian government pays PR firm to copy existing Covid data into daily email to media

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Original article by Christopher Knaus
The Guardian Australia – Page: Online : 4-Aug-21

The federal government has attracted renewed scrutiny over questionable spending policies following revelations of a contract with Cox Inall Communications. The public relations firm is being paid to copy the daily COVID-19 vaccination data on the Department of Health’s website and email it to media outlets. The data is sent in the same PDF format in which it is displayed on the department’s website. The department has declined to comment on the cost of the contract, details of which have yet to be published on the government’s AusTender website. The department has an in-house media and communications team.

CORPORATES
AUSTRALIA. DEPT OF HEALTH, COX INALL COMMUNICATIONS

CSL signs deal to make two Covid vaccines

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Original article by Jared Lynch
The Australian – Page: 15 : 8-Sep-20

Biopharmaceutical giant CSL has secured a $1.7bn deal with the federal government to produce 80 million doses of two coronavirus vaccine candidates. This comprises 30 million doses of the vaccine that is being developed by Oxford University and AstraZeneca, and 50 million doses of the vaccine that CSL is developing with the University of Queensland. Phase three clinical trials have commenced on the Oxford vaccine, while the home-grown vaccine is in phase one trials. The government will contribute $300m to the cost of upgrading CSL’s advanced manufacturing facility in Melbourne to produce the vaccines.

CORPORATES
CSL LIMITED – ASX CSL, OXFORD UNIVERSITY, ASTRAZENECA PLC

Third media report in a year

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Original article by Max Mason
The Australian Financial Review – Page: 29 : 22-Jun-20

The federal government has issued a tender for an independent report on the media industry. The Department of Infrastructure, Transport, Regional Development & Communication will pay up $220,000 for the report, which will examine both the existing business models for the media sector and the regulatory regimes in other countries. The government previously received two separate reports on the regional broadcasting sector in late 2019 and early 2020, although this will not be a specific focus of the new report.

CORPORATES
AUSTRALIA. DEPT OF INFRASTRUCTURE, TRANSPORT, REGIONAL DEVELOPMENT AND COMMUNICATIONS

Spy chief says Huawei a threat to key infrastructure

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Original article by Angus Grigg, Nick McKenzie
The Australian Financial Review – Page: 1 & 2 : 30-Oct-18

The federal government’s decision in August to ban "high-risk vendors" from building a 5G mobile network has been backed by Mike Burgess, the director-general of the Australian Signals Directorate. He says Australia’s critical infrastructure such as power and water networks would not have been able to be properly protected if such vendors had been allowed to build the 5G network. Although he did not mention them by name, it is assumed that Burgess was referring to Chinese firms Huawei and ZTE. Meanwhile, the Australian Strategic Policy Institute has expressed concern about the level of collaboration between Australian universities and Chinese military scientists.

CORPORATES
AUSTRALIAN SIGNALS DIRECTORATE, HUAWEI TECHNOLOGIES COMPANY LIMITED, ZTE CORPORATION, AUSTRALIAN STRATEGIC POLICY INSTITUTE LIMITED, SINGTEL OPTUS PTY LTD, VODAFONE AUSTRALIA LIMITED, UNIVERSITY OF NEW SOUTH WALES

Collins forced to plug the subs gap

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Original article by Paul Maley
The Australian – Page: 1 & 2 : 1-Oct-18

The Federal Government has yet to sign a strategic partnering agreement with France-based Naval Group to build a new fleet of submarines. Marcus Hellyer of the Australian Strategic Policy ­Institute has warned that a delay in finalising the agreement may in turn push back the delivery date for the 12 new submarines. He says that the government may have to extend the life of the Collins-class submarines until at least the 2040s. The first of the new Shortfin Barracuda submarines is slated for delivery in the early 2030s.

CORPORATES
NAVAL GROUP, AUSTRALIAN STRATEGIC POLICY INSTITUTE LIMITED, AUSTRALIA. DEPT OF DEFENCE, LOCKHEED MARTIN CORPORATION

Doubts over crackdown on black economy

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Original article by Tom McIlroy
The Australian Financial Review – Page: 12 : 16-Aug-18

Keith Swan of KPMG has questioned whether a Federal Government initiative will be effective in combatting the black economy. From mid-2019, companies that tender for federal contracts worth more than $4m will have to provide a statement of tax record from the Australian Taxation Office. Swan says that amongst other things, this requirement could potentially bar companies from tendering if they have had tax disputes with the ATO in the past. He adds that newly-formed companies with no tax history may have a competitive advantage over established rivals.

CORPORATES
KPMG AUSTRALIA PTY LTD, AUSTRALIAN TAXATION OFFICE, THOMSON REUTERS PLC

Rule Britannia as UK design wins $35b frigate deal

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Original article by Andrew Tillett
The Australian Financial Review – Page: 9 : 29-Jun-18

The federal government has selected UK-based BAE Systems to build Australia’s new frigates. BAE secured the $A35 billion contract ahead of Italy’s Fincantieri and Spanish company Navantia. The frigates will be known as the Hunter class and are expected to enter service in the late 2020s. Prime Minister Malcolm Turnbull has indicated that the frigate program will create 4,000 jobs, while BAE has stated that the frigates will feature up to 70 per cent Australian content.

CORPORATES
BAE SYSTEMS PLC, FINCANTIERI CANTIERI NAVALI ITALIANI SPA, NAVANTIA, AUSTRALIA. DEPT OF THE PRIME MINISTER AND CABINET, AUSTRALIA. DEPT OF DEFENCE, AUSTAL LIMITED – ASX ASB, ASC PTY LTD