Western Australia is “massively under-defended” against foreign threats compared to the rest of the country, according to state Defence Industry Minister Paul Papalia.

Papalia’s comments came after the Albanese government announced an urgent review of the nation’s defence amid fears $44.6 billion in annual spending is not doing enough to prepare the country for growing threats to its security.

WA Defence Industry Minister Paul Papalia said more troops were needed in the state’s north-west to safeguard resources assets.Credit:Getty Images

The review, to be led by former Labor defence minister Stephen Smith and former defence force chief Sir Angus Houston, will take place as the government considers pivotal decisions on nuclear submarines, a fleet of guided-missile destroyers and plans to build a bigger army.

Papalia argued more army assets needed to be based in Perth and the state’s north-west to protect the nation’s mining assets.

“When they do [the review] it will be inevitable that they decide they need to put more army and air force assets in Western Australia,” he told Radio 6PR.

“Western Australia is under-defended, we have navy assets here, but only the Special Air Service Regiment is the regular army unit and the air force has no combat elements here.

“When you look at where the assets of the nation lie, in the Pilbara which generates some 40 per cent of the nation’s revenue, we have the Pilbara Regiment, which is great, but they are a reserve regiment under strength and not very powerfully armed, and they are not enough.”

Papalia claimed the army was disproportionately located in Queensland and the Northern Territory.

“Well, if the Australian Defence Force is supposed to defend Australia, you’ve got to ask why aren’t we defending the most attractive resources the nation has because that’s what the Pilbara has: iron ore, gas, critical minerals and of course, the agriculture sector exports a large amount of export activity as well,” he said.

“The last time there was a major defence exercise in the Pilbara to my knowledge was probably the 80s, if you don’t exercise in an area you don’t know it, you don’t have to be based there all the time, but you should be operating there and be familiar with it so we have an advantage over any threat.

“We want more defence forces in Western Australia. We need more presence from the Army and the Air Force.”

Papalia urged the review, due to be completed by March, to occur rapidly.

Prime Minister Anthony Albanese went to the election with a pledge to maintain defence spending but Labor has blamed the previous government for leaving Australia with a “capability gap” because too many projects have been delivered too late and over their original budgets.

In a sign that every aspect of defence needs scrutiny, the terms of reference say the purpose of the inquiry is to assess the “structure, posture and preparedness” of the ADF and whether it can meet the challenges over the next decade.

Smith, a professor at the University of Western Australia, was foreign affairs minister from 2007 to 2010 and defence minister from 2010 to 2013 under prime ministers Kevin Rudd and Julia Gillard.

Houston, a former Royal Australian Air Force pilot, was Chief of the Defence Force from 2005 to 2011. He was appointed to head Airservices Australia by the Gillard government and knighted by then-prime minister Tony Abbott after the Coalition won the 2013 election.

With David Crowe

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