Australia Merges 3 Defence Agencies Into 1 to Speed up Projects, Control Costs
Udumbara
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The Labor government has undertaken one of the biggest overhauls of Australia’s defence apparatus in a bid to rebuild public confidence and get spending under control.
The centrepiece of the move is the creation of the “Defence Delivery Agency” (DDA)—an independent body responsible for managing major military acquisitions and ensuring projects stay within schedule and budget.
New Delivery Agency
The new agency will consolidate three major groups, the equipment-focused Capability Acquisition and Sustainment Group, the missile-focused Guided Weapons and Explosive Ordnance Group, and the Naval Shipbuilding and Sustainment Group.Once fully operational, the DDA will have full control over its budget, and direct lines of accountability.
A National Armaments Director will also be appointed to oversee acquisitions and project delivery.
Defence Minister Richard Marles said the move was critical to prepare Australia for the current strategic environment.
“It is important that we put in place the structures and systems to ensure Australia’s Defence Force can deliver the capabilities we need at speed and within budget.”
He said the new agency would “elevate the professionalism and strategic focus of Defence capability acquisition and sustainment.”
Defence Industry Minister Pat Conroy said the reforms were necessary because of the complexity of modern weapons systems.
“The increasing complexity of Defence capabilities, systems and platforms requires a systematic rethink of the capability development and delivery system. This is about setting Defence up for success so we can modernise the [Australian Defence Force or ADF] in line with the National Defence Strategy (NDS), while ensuring we spend taxpayers’ money wisely.”
Ongoing Defence Procurement Issues
Marles has expressed frustration about long-running delays in defence procurement—an ongoing situation with successive governments—saying in June that Defence inherited “28 different projects running a combined 97 years over time.”“That did represent a failure of leadership on the part of the former Coalition in government,” he said.
In turn, Shadow Defence Minister Angus Taylor has repeatedly argued the government is underinvesting in defence, saying: “Alarm bells are ringing on Australia’s commitment to Defence.”
Taylor said analysts from the Australian Strategic Policy Institute and warnings from the Pentagon highlight the need for urgency.
“Our region is becoming more contested, more volatile, and more exposed to coercion. We are already seeing cyber attacks, unsafe intercepts of Australian aircraft, and foreign grey-zone operations at our doorstep,” he said.
A review of the 2025 defence budget by Strategic Analysis Australia found Defence repeatedly falling short on spending targets.
The analysis reported that “Defence hasn’t been able to hit its acquisition spending targets even before it attempts to deliver the more ambitious plan presented in the NDS … Defence hasn’t spent the money it had to in order to deliver planned military capabilities. Over the past decade, it’s fallen short by $26 billion.”
Defence currently operates on a budget approaching $60 billion a year, but that figure is projected to reach about $100 billion annually by 2034, driven by the Chinese Communist Party’s expanding military posture and expectations from the Trump administration that allies must lift spending.
A government statement claimed that since 2022, the Albanese government has authorised the largest increase in defence spending in Australia’s peacetime history—an additional $70 billion over the next decade, with record funding dedicated to acquisition and sustainment.
In May, U.S. Defence Secretary Pete Hegseth publicly pressed Australia to hit 3.5 percent of GDP “as soon as possible,” calling the current trajectory inadequate for the region’s deteriorating security situation.
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