In the latest instalment of Paint by Numbers, Crikey’s new series about the big issues of the day told via the numbers, we break down some of the astronomical sums involved the AUKUS deal, and look at what we’re getting for our money.
Money already spent on the French submarine deal when it was scrapped: $2.4 billion
Money spent getting out of that deal: $830 million
Money to be “invested” in US shipyards by Australia via AUKUS: $4.53 billion (over five years)
Money to be paid to the UK by Australia to clear “bottlenecks” at the nuclear reactor production line via AUKUS: $4.6 billion (over 10 years)
Total cost of AUKUS to Australia over the next decade: $58 billion
The amount of money the federal government has “squirrelled away” to lift defence funding over the coming decade: $30 billion
Estimated number of experts with at least 20 years’ experience in nuclear technology required: 200
Number of experts with at least 20 years’ experience in nuclear technology currently in Australia: “Virtually nobody“
Number of jobs created during the month of February 2024: 116,000
Number of jobs Labor claims to have created since being in office (as of March 21): 790,000
Number of jobs created over the last 30 years by the Australian economy overall: 6 million
Estimated investment in the Australian industry and workforce over the forward estimates (as of May 2023): $6 billion.
How many jobs the government claims AUKUS will create in Australia over the next 30 years: 20,000
Total cost of AUKUS: $268-368 billion
Cost per job: $13.4-18.4 million
