A labour union has expressed alarm about newly released documents that reveal Port Kembla to be a preferred Australian base for nuclear-powered submarines, stating it would "place a massive target on our backs." The South Coast Labour Council (SCLC) has warned federal and state politicians of "political fallout" should they proceed with "surrendering Port Kembla to Trump's Navy" as an Aukus base.
Documents prepared by the former New South Wales Liberal government and tabled in state parliament on Friday named Port Kembla—75km south of Sydney—as the preferred east coast base for Australia's proposed nuclear submarine fleet. The documents cautioned that the base could make the area "a target for Australian military adversaries."
Arthur Rorris, secretary of the SCLC, said: "The secret report also tells the government that what they really need to worry about is the political fallout. They got that right." He noted that schools are within walking distance of the proposed base, and the project would significantly impact health services, roads, and house prices.
"The admission by the government's own reports that our transport, health, security, industrial land capacity and housing will all suffer tells you why the government kept it secret from our people," Rorris added.
The outcry comes as Australia's Aukus spending balloons and US submarine construction falls further behind schedule, raising concerns that the Virginia-class nuclear submarines Australia relies on to launch its nuclear fleet may never materialise under Australian command. Rorris argued it is becoming increasingly clear that there will be no Australian nuclear submarines, and Port Kembla would simply be "a base for US subs that we are paying for."
In March 2022, the then Coalition government announced its intention to build an east coast submarine base for the new nuclear-powered submarines promised under the Aukus agreement. Port Kembla was shortlisted alongside Brisbane and Newcastle. Following the Albanese government's 2023 defence strategic review, Labor stated a decision on the east coast base would be made towards the end of the decade.
Marcus Strom, national convener of Labor Against War, said the group unequivocally opposes the "creation of a US nuclear base on the east coast of Australia" and vowed to work with Illawarra communities to resist any such proposal. Strom pledged to bring the opposition to Aukus and the Port Kembla base to the NSW state conference and the national ALP conference.
"We've been saying the whole time that Aukus doesn't make us safer, it makes us an active participant in US war planning and that will just make us a target," Strom said. He called on the NSW government to "reassure the people of the Illawara" and "rule out a base at Port Kembla."
Many Port Kembla residents have voiced opposition to the proposed base. In September, more than 40 organisations signed the Port Kembla declaration, insisting their community should not host a nuclear submarine base. In 2023, 4,000 residents marched from Wollongong to Port Kembla to protest against an Aukus base.
