An independent inquiry into the $368 billion AUKUS defence pact was launched in Parliament House in Canberra on 2nd June 2026.
This inquiry is a much needed response to growing concerns over the lack of scrutiny surrounding the nation’s most expensive defence project.
AUKUS is a trilateral security partnership between Australia, the United Kingdom, and the United States.
Jointly announced on 15 September 2021 by then Prime Minister Scott Morrison, UK Prime Minister Boris Johnson and US President Joe Biden, the partnership involves two ‘pillars’ of military activity.
Pillar 1 focuses on Australia acquiring nuclear-powered attack submarines and the rotational basing of US and UK nuclear-powered attack submarines in Australia, while Pillar 2 entails the collaborative development of advanced defence capabilities.
The inquiry will focus on Australia’s commitment to buy nuclear-powered submarines under AUKUS Pillar I and is due to commence deliberations on 3rd June in Canberra.
Former Labor minister, environmental activist and Midnight Oil frontman Peter Garrett will lead the inquiry. He will be assisted by four other commissioners, namely former WA Labor premier and federal Labor minister Dr Carmen Lawrence, former Chief of Navy and Chief of Defence Force Admiral Chris Barrie (Ret’d), the co-CEO of the Australia Institute Leanne Minshull, and Yankunytjatjara woman Karina Lester.
The project is an initiative of the Australian Peace and Security Forum and will be partly financed through crowdfunding which aims to raise $150,000. The project currently has the support of a number of organisations including the Independent and Peaceful Australia Network (IPAN), the Australian Conservation Foundation, International Campaign to Abolish Nuclear Weapons (ICAN Australia), the Sydney Peace Foundation, and Australians for War Powers Reform.
In addition, several labour organisations have also supported the inquiry, including the Maritime Union of Australia, the Electrical Trades Union, the Australian Education Union, and the South Coast Labour Council which has vigorously opposed Port Kembla being designated as an east coast submarine base.
In a statement issued on 2nd June, Peter Garrett said that a public inquiry into AUKUS was long overdue:
“AUKUS is by far the most expensive and complex undertaking ever entered into by any Australian government and yet the opportunity to question, debate and decide has been taken out of the hands of the parliament and the people”
In addition, Dr Lawrence said a basic requirement of any functioning democracy was government transparency:
“It is simply not credible that the Federal Government can take nearly $400 billion from the Australian people, make private deals with US technology companies and foreign governments to access the Australian mainland and our data, and then tell us not to ask questions.
“Australians would never accept that, and nor should we,” she said. “That’s why this inquiry is vital.”
Key questions the inquiry plans to examine include:
- Cost, jobs & fiscal impact – Is the $368 billion plus price tag accurate? What are the opportunity costs for national security, housing, jobs, healthcare, education, climate action, and Closing the Gap between Aboriginal and Torres Strait Islander peoples and non-Indigenous Australians?
- Strategic rationale – Does AUKUS genuinely enhance Australian security, or does it increase our exposure to great-power conflict with China?
- Sovereignty & independence – Is AUKUS locking Australia further into the US war machine at the expense of our independence as a middle power?
- Nuclear non-proliferation & environmental consequences – Does the transfer of nuclear technology set a dangerous precedent? What are the implications for our existing nuclear non-proliferation treaty commitments? Where and how will medium and high-level nuclear waste be stored? What are the long-term environmental risks of operating nuclear-powered submarines in Australian waters?
- Advanced capabilities & education – What is the impact of AUKUS on Australia’s tertiary sector, research institutions, and universities? How is the expansion into AI, autonomous weapons, and emerging technologies reshaping Australian defence, and at what cost to sovereign capability? Why must technological advancement be progressed primarily under the AUKUS banner?
- Alternatives considered – Were credible and less costly alternatives to AUKUS properly assessed before the decision was made in secret?
The inquiry’s commissioners have invited written and oral submissions from individuals, organisations, experts, and local communities. As well, public hearings in capital cities and impacted regional centres such as Fremantle, Port Kembla and other places are planned to be held. In addition, the inquiry aims to review relevant literature, government documents, and expert research and reports.
The inquiry is due to hand down its report and findings by 30th October 2026.
AUKUS Inquiry – Links
Independent and Peaceful Australia Network (IPAN) – End AUKUS
Notes
Tegan George. ‘Peter Garrett to lead ‘long overdue’ public inquiry into AUKUS‘, The Point, Jun 3, 2026.
Tegan George. ‘$368 Billion AUKUS deal labelled ‘absurd’ as scrutiny intensifies over latest changes’, The Point, Jun 3, 2026.
IPAN, ‘AUKUS Security Pact: An Explainer’, PowerPoint presentation, May 2026.
Marrickville Peace Group, ‘Webinar – Resisting AUKUS and War on China – Video & Transcript’, Feb 17, 2022.