Reforming Defence Capability Development and Delivery
On 01 December 2025, the Hon. Richard Marles MP, Acting Prime Minister and Minister for Defence and the Hon. Pat Conroy MP, Minister for Defence Industry and for Pacific Island Affairs, announced changes to the Department of Defence with the amalgamation of three groups into the newly formed Defence Delivery Agency.
The Albanese Government has stated this takes the next significant step towards ensuring Defence delivers the capabilities, skills and workforce to meet Australia’s strategic circumstances. These reforms include the establishment of the Defence Delivery Agency as a dedicated agency designed to strengthen and streamline acquisition and sustainment activities.
The new Defence Delivery Agency will integrate three existing Defence capability delivery groups:
- Capability Acquisition and Sustainment Group (CASG)
- Guided Weapons and Explosive Ordnance Group (GWEO) ; and
- Naval Shipbuilding and Sustainment Group (NSGG)
The agency will report directly to Ministers and have control over its budget. The Government will appoint a National Armaments Director to lead the new agency, who will be responsible for providing advice to the Government on acquisition strategies and the delivery of acquisition and sustainment projects following Government approval.
Defence will also centralise capability development functions to support clearer prioritisation, streamlined decision-making and accountability for new capability proposals to ensure capabilities support an integrated, focused Australian Defence Force. These reforms are to pursue the Government’s intention to support greater project and budget management, cost estimation and assurance right across the life of a project.
Implementation work, including the design and development of the Defence Delivery Agency, will begin immediately and will include consultation with relevant stakeholders, including industry.
Further Information
For more information, please contact Hawker Britton’s Partner Director Tim Grey-Smith +61 432 226 or Partner & CEO Simon Banks on +61 419 638 587.
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