Volkswagen isn't closing the door on a new Tiguan R
The Volkswagen Tiguan R has proven to be a sales success both here in Australia and around the world, but the German brand hasn't committed to a successor – at least for now…
Speaking with CarExpert at the Australian media launch of the updated Golf R Mk8.5, head of sales and marketing at the Volkswagen R performance division, Pedro Martinez Diaz, left the door open to a new go-fast Tiguan.
"I would never say no. The Tiguan [R] was very successful in Europe and Australia… we'll see," Mr Martinez Diaz said.
Hundreds of new car deals are available through CarExpert right now. Get the experts on your side and score a great deal. Browse now.
Pictured: Previous-generation Volkswagen Tiguan R
First revealed in 2020, the Volkswagen Tiguan R was a fully-fledged performance hero of the second-generation Tiguan lineup, packing the same 235kW/420Nm 2.0-litre four-cylinder turbo-petrol engine as the Mk8 Golf R hot hatch.
Australia got a slightly milder 400Nm tune due our market not receiving a petrol particulate filter (PPF) like the European specification, but even with 20Nm less torque the hot mid-size SUV could dash from 0-100km/h in a claimed 5.1 seconds.
It proved popular in Australia too, despite a price tag eclipsing $70,000 before on-road costs. While VW Australia hasn't quoted actual sales figures, demand often outstripped supply locally, prompting the brand's local arm to offer a 300-unit run of Grid Editions which went without some luxury features during the global semiconductor shortage.
For the new, third-generation Tiguan range, the most potent variant currently is the 195TSI R-Line, which loses out on some grunt and performance, but ups it on luxury features and tech – read the full price and specs here.
No doubt VW's R division could easily slip the latest Golf R's 245kW/420Nm turbocharged drivetrain under the latest Tiguan, which now rides on the same newer MQB Evo underpinnings as the German hatchback, as well as a slew of other models like the Cupra Formentor, Leon and Audi S3.
Pictured: 2025 Volkswagen Tiguan 195TSI R-Line
However, tightening emissions regulations in Europe and the UK likely put an all-out performance version of the third-gen Tiguan on the backburner given the nameplate's popularity, and the need to meet fleet emissions targets with a larger car.
Overseas there's also a 200kW/400Nm Tiguan eHybrid PHEV which sits alongside the 195TSI-spec petrol Tiguan, though its FWD-only design means its 0-100km/h pace pales compared to the 195TSI's 5.8-second acceleration and the old R's 5.1-second time.
While the PHEV can't beat its combustion-only contemporaries in a drag race, it'll do over 100km of EV-only driving per charge and quotes combined fuel consumption of just 0.4L/100km with a full battery, so you can see why this drivetrain may have received preference over a new R.
Let us know in the comments if you'd like to see a new-generation Volkswagen Tiguan R!
MORE: Everything Volkswagen Tiguan
Content originally sourced from: CarExpert.com.au
The Volkswagen Tiguan R has proven to be a sales success both here in Australia and around the world, but the German brand hasn't committed to a successor – at least for now…
Speaking with CarExpert at the Australian media launch of the updated Golf R Mk8.5, head of sales and marketing at the Volkswagen R performance division, Pedro Martinez Diaz, left the door open to a new go-fast Tiguan.
"I would never say no. The Tiguan [R] was very successful in Europe and Australia… we'll see," Mr Martinez Diaz said.
Hundreds of new car deals are available through CarExpert right now. Get the experts on your side and score a great deal. Browse now.
Pictured: Previous-generation Volkswagen Tiguan R
First revealed in 2020, the Volkswagen Tiguan R was a fully-fledged performance hero of the second-generation Tiguan lineup, packing the same 235kW/420Nm 2.0-litre four-cylinder turbo-petrol engine as the Mk8 Golf R hot hatch.
Australia got a slightly milder 400Nm tune due our market not receiving a petrol particulate filter (PPF) like the European specification, but even with 20Nm less torque the hot mid-size SUV could dash from 0-100km/h in a claimed 5.1 seconds.
It proved popular in Australia too, despite a price tag eclipsing $70,000 before on-road costs. While VW Australia hasn't quoted actual sales figures, demand often outstripped supply locally, prompting the brand's local arm to offer a 300-unit run of Grid Editions which went without some luxury features during the global semiconductor shortage.
For the new, third-generation Tiguan range, the most potent variant currently is the 195TSI R-Line, which loses out on some grunt and performance, but ups it on luxury features and tech – read the full price and specs here.
No doubt VW's R division could easily slip the latest Golf R's 245kW/420Nm turbocharged drivetrain under the latest Tiguan, which now rides on the same newer MQB Evo underpinnings as the German hatchback, as well as a slew of other models like the Cupra Formentor, Leon and Audi S3.
Pictured: 2025 Volkswagen Tiguan 195TSI R-Line
However, tightening emissions regulations in Europe and the UK likely put an all-out performance version of the third-gen Tiguan on the backburner given the nameplate's popularity, and the need to meet fleet emissions targets with a larger car.
Overseas there's also a 200kW/400Nm Tiguan eHybrid PHEV which sits alongside the 195TSI-spec petrol Tiguan, though its FWD-only design means its 0-100km/h pace pales compared to the 195TSI's 5.8-second acceleration and the old R's 5.1-second time.
While the PHEV can't beat its combustion-only contemporaries in a drag race, it'll do over 100km of EV-only driving per charge and quotes combined fuel consumption of just 0.4L/100km with a full battery, so you can see why this drivetrain may have received preference over a new R.
Let us know in the comments if you'd like to see a new-generation Volkswagen Tiguan R!
MORE: Everything Volkswagen Tiguan
Content originally sourced from: CarExpert.com.au
The Volkswagen Tiguan R has proven to be a sales success both here in Australia and around the world, but the German brand hasn't committed to a successor – at least for now…
Speaking with CarExpert at the Australian media launch of the updated Golf R Mk8.5, head of sales and marketing at the Volkswagen R performance division, Pedro Martinez Diaz, left the door open to a new go-fast Tiguan.
"I would never say no. The Tiguan [R] was very successful in Europe and Australia… we'll see," Mr Martinez Diaz said.
Hundreds of new car deals are available through CarExpert right now. Get the experts on your side and score a great deal. Browse now.
Pictured: Previous-generation Volkswagen Tiguan R
First revealed in 2020, the Volkswagen Tiguan R was a fully-fledged performance hero of the second-generation Tiguan lineup, packing the same 235kW/420Nm 2.0-litre four-cylinder turbo-petrol engine as the Mk8 Golf R hot hatch.
Australia got a slightly milder 400Nm tune due our market not receiving a petrol particulate filter (PPF) like the European specification, but even with 20Nm less torque the hot mid-size SUV could dash from 0-100km/h in a claimed 5.1 seconds.
It proved popular in Australia too, despite a price tag eclipsing $70,000 before on-road costs. While VW Australia hasn't quoted actual sales figures, demand often outstripped supply locally, prompting the brand's local arm to offer a 300-unit run of Grid Editions which went without some luxury features during the global semiconductor shortage.
For the new, third-generation Tiguan range, the most potent variant currently is the 195TSI R-Line, which loses out on some grunt and performance, but ups it on luxury features and tech – read the full price and specs here.
No doubt VW's R division could easily slip the latest Golf R's 245kW/420Nm turbocharged drivetrain under the latest Tiguan, which now rides on the same newer MQB Evo underpinnings as the German hatchback, as well as a slew of other models like the Cupra Formentor, Leon and Audi S3.
Pictured: 2025 Volkswagen Tiguan 195TSI R-Line
However, tightening emissions regulations in Europe and the UK likely put an all-out performance version of the third-gen Tiguan on the backburner given the nameplate's popularity, and the need to meet fleet emissions targets with a larger car.
Overseas there's also a 200kW/400Nm Tiguan eHybrid PHEV which sits alongside the 195TSI-spec petrol Tiguan, though its FWD-only design means its 0-100km/h pace pales compared to the 195TSI's 5.8-second acceleration and the old R's 5.1-second time.
While the PHEV can't beat its combustion-only contemporaries in a drag race, it'll do over 100km of EV-only driving per charge and quotes combined fuel consumption of just 0.4L/100km with a full battery, so you can see why this drivetrain may have received preference over a new R.
Let us know in the comments if you'd like to see a new-generation Volkswagen Tiguan R!
MORE: Everything Volkswagen Tiguan
Content originally sourced from: CarExpert.com.au
The Volkswagen Tiguan R has proven to be a sales success both here in Australia and around the world, but the German brand hasn't committed to a successor – at least for now…
Speaking with CarExpert at the Australian media launch of the updated Golf R Mk8.5, head of sales and marketing at the Volkswagen R performance division, Pedro Martinez Diaz, left the door open to a new go-fast Tiguan.
"I would never say no. The Tiguan [R] was very successful in Europe and Australia… we'll see," Mr Martinez Diaz said.
Hundreds of new car deals are available through CarExpert right now. Get the experts on your side and score a great deal. Browse now.
Pictured: Previous-generation Volkswagen Tiguan R
First revealed in 2020, the Volkswagen Tiguan R was a fully-fledged performance hero of the second-generation Tiguan lineup, packing the same 235kW/420Nm 2.0-litre four-cylinder turbo-petrol engine as the Mk8 Golf R hot hatch.
Australia got a slightly milder 400Nm tune due our market not receiving a petrol particulate filter (PPF) like the European specification, but even with 20Nm less torque the hot mid-size SUV could dash from 0-100km/h in a claimed 5.1 seconds.
It proved popular in Australia too, despite a price tag eclipsing $70,000 before on-road costs. While VW Australia hasn't quoted actual sales figures, demand often outstripped supply locally, prompting the brand's local arm to offer a 300-unit run of Grid Editions which went without some luxury features during the global semiconductor shortage.
For the new, third-generation Tiguan range, the most potent variant currently is the 195TSI R-Line, which loses out on some grunt and performance, but ups it on luxury features and tech – read the full price and specs here.
No doubt VW's R division could easily slip the latest Golf R's 245kW/420Nm turbocharged drivetrain under the latest Tiguan, which now rides on the same newer MQB Evo underpinnings as the German hatchback, as well as a slew of other models like the Cupra Formentor, Leon and Audi S3.
Pictured: 2025 Volkswagen Tiguan 195TSI R-Line
However, tightening emissions regulations in Europe and the UK likely put an all-out performance version of the third-gen Tiguan on the backburner given the nameplate's popularity, and the need to meet fleet emissions targets with a larger car.
Overseas there's also a 200kW/400Nm Tiguan eHybrid PHEV which sits alongside the 195TSI-spec petrol Tiguan, though its FWD-only design means its 0-100km/h pace pales compared to the 195TSI's 5.8-second acceleration and the old R's 5.1-second time.
While the PHEV can't beat its combustion-only contemporaries in a drag race, it'll do over 100km of EV-only driving per charge and quotes combined fuel consumption of just 0.4L/100km with a full battery, so you can see why this drivetrain may have received preference over a new R.
Let us know in the comments if you'd like to see a new-generation Volkswagen Tiguan R!
MORE: Everything Volkswagen Tiguan
Content originally sourced from: CarExpert.com.au
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TO those who pen long, biased political dissertations, I say there's none so blind as those who do not want to see. SINCE 2022, there have been regular flooding events occurring along the entire Australian east coast, from north Queensland through NSW to Victoria. They have resulted in tens of thousands of homes damaged or destroyed. Houses damaged and destroyed in the Lismore floods of 2022 are still being repaired or rebuilt so that their owners can live in them once more. Flood events since then have occurred in Cairns, Ingham, Townsville, Brisbane, Kempsey, Port Macquarie, Taree, the Hunter Valley, the Sydney Basin and areas down the south coast into Victoria. That's all within just two and a half years. All areas hit by such disasters require renovation and rebuilding of people's homes. In the most recent floods, authorities estimate 10,000 houses have been affected. Thousands of tradespeople are engaged in the repair and reconstruction of these homes. With so many tradespeople occupied in these rebuild programs as disasters keep coming, the workforce required to construct the large numbers of new houses to address the general housing shortage just doesn't exist. Trying to train substantial numbers of new tradespeople to address the scale of the shortage seems impossible. It is reasonable to presume that more disasters, such as floods and fires, will provide plenty of ongoing reconstruction work and take large numbers of tradespeople away from new home builds. In two or three years, I expect they will still be repairing and rebuilding homes in Kempsey and Taree. Substantially reducing immigration into Australia for a number of years to allow a catch-up in the workload is required. The problem with that, of course, is that to maintain our economy and standard of living, it is reliant on an ever-increasing level of migration into this country. Many people would be surprised by how important it is to have a high level of immigration occurring on a constant basis. It's very much like an ongoing Ponzi scheme. If you stop, the whole system (economy and living standard) goes into decline. Things are bad enough now, but I believe house prices are going to go up substantially, while availability will plateau, or at least not increase substantially. THE Davidson Report found Newcastle council meetings were too long and overly political, from what I understand. So, at the first council meeting after the report, it felt like all the party politicians lined up to spend two hours attacking the lord mayor. One hour was devoted to recognising the University of Newcastle. It's not that hard to recognise; it's huge. Perhaps a positive is that our elected party politicians are now all voting together, albeit on everything, to drive out any 'non-party' views. They seem united in backing the opposite of lord mayor Ross Kerridge to me. Wow, maybe party politics is dead in Newcastle. HERE go the Boomers again, trying to kill off a proposed tax on super accounts over $3 million. They were successful in defeating changes to negative gearing, franking credits and capital gains tax concessions, so why not? This is a generation for whom university was free, jobs were plentiful, houses were cheap and for many, an era of two-income households. A lot of wealth was created. They are also being supported by the taxpayer in retirement and have their hands out for whatever is on offer. This comes at a terrible cost to younger generations, who see the future as a continual struggle and unfairly carry the tax burden. We have real poverty in Australia, with children who go without, which limits their potential. We have homelessness growing, and people living with insecurity over food, housing and healthcare. It is not good enough and can only be addressed through fair and sweeping tax reform. The Labor government has six years to turn the growing inequality gap around and we must all pay where we can afford to do so. The vulgar displays of wealth in this country show a cohort who have not paid enough tax and don't seem to think they owe society, from which they have done very well, any recompense. The pressure on public hospitals, schools, social housing and welfare is not sustainable. End the bleating from those who can afford to pay. TWO recent opinion pieces made some good points. One by Mark Kenny on party politics, and another on super changes by Jack Thrower. Thrower is an economist with the Australia Institute, which claims to be non-partisan. It was started by former Greens candidate Clive Hamilton and its director, Richard Denniss, is a former senior strategic advisor to Australian Greens leader Bob Brown, who taught at the Newcastle University and the Australian National University (ANU). Mark Kenny also writes for The Canberra Times, a left-centre paper. He is a professor at ANU and a former Fairfax and ABC employee. He is the director of the National Press Club. Their opinions are relevant, but thanks to the Herald, we can look at those opinions with more insight. Mind you, if you want a left-wing opinion, on just about anything, you can get it from the ANU. Even if the City of Newcastle was considered high performing, clearly some common sense is missing in the hard rubbish collection section ("Flooding leads to fight over rubbish", Newcastle Herald 23/5) if poor residents affected by flooding are told to wait and take their rotting rubbish inside. How about organising a priority collection for them? I'm sure those not affected by flooding could wait another week. It's not rocket science. MICHAEL Hinchey is spot on ("The centre is where you must hold", Letters, 28/5). The near-defunct Coalition needs to stop pandering to the climate change deniers (an ever-diminishing minority) and state clearly and categorically that they accept the reality of anthropomorphic climate change. Until they do so, they'll remain an anachronistic irrelevant force in Australian politics. Did 'Macadamus' predict the Coalition band getting back together? They won't pull a crowd, but they don't have to; the band just has to sit back and watch Albo turn into Milli Vanilli. I WONDER if Steve Barnett ("Insurgents are survivors somehow", Letters, 27/5) knows he is talking about old Israeli propaganda, suddenly replaced by 'Hamas is using the food to buy weapons.' From who? The surrounding Israeli Army. Then it changed to 'They are using it to buy war materials'. What, rubble? Then it morphed into selling it to get money from Palestinians. Why, when they can just take the money? None of these things can happen if there is enough food in Gaza to begin with. TO those who pen long, biased political dissertations, I say there's none so blind as those who do not want to see. SINCE 2022, there have been regular flooding events occurring along the entire Australian east coast, from north Queensland through NSW to Victoria. They have resulted in tens of thousands of homes damaged or destroyed. Houses damaged and destroyed in the Lismore floods of 2022 are still being repaired or rebuilt so that their owners can live in them once more. Flood events since then have occurred in Cairns, Ingham, Townsville, Brisbane, Kempsey, Port Macquarie, Taree, the Hunter Valley, the Sydney Basin and areas down the south coast into Victoria. That's all within just two and a half years. All areas hit by such disasters require renovation and rebuilding of people's homes. In the most recent floods, authorities estimate 10,000 houses have been affected. Thousands of tradespeople are engaged in the repair and reconstruction of these homes. With so many tradespeople occupied in these rebuild programs as disasters keep coming, the workforce required to construct the large numbers of new houses to address the general housing shortage just doesn't exist. Trying to train substantial numbers of new tradespeople to address the scale of the shortage seems impossible. It is reasonable to presume that more disasters, such as floods and fires, will provide plenty of ongoing reconstruction work and take large numbers of tradespeople away from new home builds. In two or three years, I expect they will still be repairing and rebuilding homes in Kempsey and Taree. Substantially reducing immigration into Australia for a number of years to allow a catch-up in the workload is required. The problem with that, of course, is that to maintain our economy and standard of living, it is reliant on an ever-increasing level of migration into this country. Many people would be surprised by how important it is to have a high level of immigration occurring on a constant basis. It's very much like an ongoing Ponzi scheme. If you stop, the whole system (economy and living standard) goes into decline. Things are bad enough now, but I believe house prices are going to go up substantially, while availability will plateau, or at least not increase substantially. THE Davidson Report found Newcastle council meetings were too long and overly political, from what I understand. So, at the first council meeting after the report, it felt like all the party politicians lined up to spend two hours attacking the lord mayor. One hour was devoted to recognising the University of Newcastle. It's not that hard to recognise; it's huge. Perhaps a positive is that our elected party politicians are now all voting together, albeit on everything, to drive out any 'non-party' views. They seem united in backing the opposite of lord mayor Ross Kerridge to me. Wow, maybe party politics is dead in Newcastle. HERE go the Boomers again, trying to kill off a proposed tax on super accounts over $3 million. They were successful in defeating changes to negative gearing, franking credits and capital gains tax concessions, so why not? This is a generation for whom university was free, jobs were plentiful, houses were cheap and for many, an era of two-income households. A lot of wealth was created. They are also being supported by the taxpayer in retirement and have their hands out for whatever is on offer. This comes at a terrible cost to younger generations, who see the future as a continual struggle and unfairly carry the tax burden. We have real poverty in Australia, with children who go without, which limits their potential. We have homelessness growing, and people living with insecurity over food, housing and healthcare. It is not good enough and can only be addressed through fair and sweeping tax reform. The Labor government has six years to turn the growing inequality gap around and we must all pay where we can afford to do so. The vulgar displays of wealth in this country show a cohort who have not paid enough tax and don't seem to think they owe society, from which they have done very well, any recompense. The pressure on public hospitals, schools, social housing and welfare is not sustainable. End the bleating from those who can afford to pay. TWO recent opinion pieces made some good points. One by Mark Kenny on party politics, and another on super changes by Jack Thrower. Thrower is an economist with the Australia Institute, which claims to be non-partisan. It was started by former Greens candidate Clive Hamilton and its director, Richard Denniss, is a former senior strategic advisor to Australian Greens leader Bob Brown, who taught at the Newcastle University and the Australian National University (ANU). Mark Kenny also writes for The Canberra Times, a left-centre paper. He is a professor at ANU and a former Fairfax and ABC employee. He is the director of the National Press Club. Their opinions are relevant, but thanks to the Herald, we can look at those opinions with more insight. Mind you, if you want a left-wing opinion, on just about anything, you can get it from the ANU. Even if the City of Newcastle was considered high performing, clearly some common sense is missing in the hard rubbish collection section ("Flooding leads to fight over rubbish", Newcastle Herald 23/5) if poor residents affected by flooding are told to wait and take their rotting rubbish inside. How about organising a priority collection for them? I'm sure those not affected by flooding could wait another week. It's not rocket science. MICHAEL Hinchey is spot on ("The centre is where you must hold", Letters, 28/5). The near-defunct Coalition needs to stop pandering to the climate change deniers (an ever-diminishing minority) and state clearly and categorically that they accept the reality of anthropomorphic climate change. Until they do so, they'll remain an anachronistic irrelevant force in Australian politics. Did 'Macadamus' predict the Coalition band getting back together? They won't pull a crowd, but they don't have to; the band just has to sit back and watch Albo turn into Milli Vanilli. I WONDER if Steve Barnett ("Insurgents are survivors somehow", Letters, 27/5) knows he is talking about old Israeli propaganda, suddenly replaced by 'Hamas is using the food to buy weapons.' From who? The surrounding Israeli Army. Then it changed to 'They are using it to buy war materials'. What, rubble? Then it morphed into selling it to get money from Palestinians. Why, when they can just take the money? None of these things can happen if there is enough food in Gaza to begin with. TO those who pen long, biased political dissertations, I say there's none so blind as those who do not want to see. SINCE 2022, there have been regular flooding events occurring along the entire Australian east coast, from north Queensland through NSW to Victoria. They have resulted in tens of thousands of homes damaged or destroyed. Houses damaged and destroyed in the Lismore floods of 2022 are still being repaired or rebuilt so that their owners can live in them once more. Flood events since then have occurred in Cairns, Ingham, Townsville, Brisbane, Kempsey, Port Macquarie, Taree, the Hunter Valley, the Sydney Basin and areas down the south coast into Victoria. That's all within just two and a half years. All areas hit by such disasters require renovation and rebuilding of people's homes. In the most recent floods, authorities estimate 10,000 houses have been affected. Thousands of tradespeople are engaged in the repair and reconstruction of these homes. With so many tradespeople occupied in these rebuild programs as disasters keep coming, the workforce required to construct the large numbers of new houses to address the general housing shortage just doesn't exist. Trying to train substantial numbers of new tradespeople to address the scale of the shortage seems impossible. It is reasonable to presume that more disasters, such as floods and fires, will provide plenty of ongoing reconstruction work and take large numbers of tradespeople away from new home builds. In two or three years, I expect they will still be repairing and rebuilding homes in Kempsey and Taree. Substantially reducing immigration into Australia for a number of years to allow a catch-up in the workload is required. The problem with that, of course, is that to maintain our economy and standard of living, it is reliant on an ever-increasing level of migration into this country. Many people would be surprised by how important it is to have a high level of immigration occurring on a constant basis. It's very much like an ongoing Ponzi scheme. If you stop, the whole system (economy and living standard) goes into decline. Things are bad enough now, but I believe house prices are going to go up substantially, while availability will plateau, or at least not increase substantially. THE Davidson Report found Newcastle council meetings were too long and overly political, from what I understand. So, at the first council meeting after the report, it felt like all the party politicians lined up to spend two hours attacking the lord mayor. One hour was devoted to recognising the University of Newcastle. It's not that hard to recognise; it's huge. Perhaps a positive is that our elected party politicians are now all voting together, albeit on everything, to drive out any 'non-party' views. They seem united in backing the opposite of lord mayor Ross Kerridge to me. Wow, maybe party politics is dead in Newcastle. HERE go the Boomers again, trying to kill off a proposed tax on super accounts over $3 million. They were successful in defeating changes to negative gearing, franking credits and capital gains tax concessions, so why not? This is a generation for whom university was free, jobs were plentiful, houses were cheap and for many, an era of two-income households. A lot of wealth was created. They are also being supported by the taxpayer in retirement and have their hands out for whatever is on offer. This comes at a terrible cost to younger generations, who see the future as a continual struggle and unfairly carry the tax burden. We have real poverty in Australia, with children who go without, which limits their potential. We have homelessness growing, and people living with insecurity over food, housing and healthcare. It is not good enough and can only be addressed through fair and sweeping tax reform. The Labor government has six years to turn the growing inequality gap around and we must all pay where we can afford to do so. The vulgar displays of wealth in this country show a cohort who have not paid enough tax and don't seem to think they owe society, from which they have done very well, any recompense. The pressure on public hospitals, schools, social housing and welfare is not sustainable. End the bleating from those who can afford to pay. TWO recent opinion pieces made some good points. One by Mark Kenny on party politics, and another on super changes by Jack Thrower. Thrower is an economist with the Australia Institute, which claims to be non-partisan. It was started by former Greens candidate Clive Hamilton and its director, Richard Denniss, is a former senior strategic advisor to Australian Greens leader Bob Brown, who taught at the Newcastle University and the Australian National University (ANU). Mark Kenny also writes for The Canberra Times, a left-centre paper. He is a professor at ANU and a former Fairfax and ABC employee. He is the director of the National Press Club. Their opinions are relevant, but thanks to the Herald, we can look at those opinions with more insight. Mind you, if you want a left-wing opinion, on just about anything, you can get it from the ANU. Even if the City of Newcastle was considered high performing, clearly some common sense is missing in the hard rubbish collection section ("Flooding leads to fight over rubbish", Newcastle Herald 23/5) if poor residents affected by flooding are told to wait and take their rotting rubbish inside. How about organising a priority collection for them? I'm sure those not affected by flooding could wait another week. It's not rocket science. MICHAEL Hinchey is spot on ("The centre is where you must hold", Letters, 28/5). The near-defunct Coalition needs to stop pandering to the climate change deniers (an ever-diminishing minority) and state clearly and categorically that they accept the reality of anthropomorphic climate change. Until they do so, they'll remain an anachronistic irrelevant force in Australian politics. Did 'Macadamus' predict the Coalition band getting back together? They won't pull a crowd, but they don't have to; the band just has to sit back and watch Albo turn into Milli Vanilli. I WONDER if Steve Barnett ("Insurgents are survivors somehow", Letters, 27/5) knows he is talking about old Israeli propaganda, suddenly replaced by 'Hamas is using the food to buy weapons.' From who? The surrounding Israeli Army. Then it changed to 'They are using it to buy war materials'. What, rubble? Then it morphed into selling it to get money from Palestinians. Why, when they can just take the money? None of these things can happen if there is enough food in Gaza to begin with. TO those who pen long, biased political dissertations, I say there's none so blind as those who do not want to see.
Sky News AU
an hour ago
- Sky News AU
Jacqui Lambie lashes US defence spend request and points to ADF ‘personnel crisis' as primary national security concern
Tasmanian Senator Jacqui Lambie has hit out at the US President and his Defence Secretary's request to Australia for additional military spending and pointed to the Australian Defence Force's 'personnel crisis' as the country's main national security issue. Defence Minister Richard Marles met with US Secretary of Defence Pete Hegseth on the sidelines of the Shangri La Dialogue in Singapore last week to discuss the key priorities of the US-Australia alliance in the face of a potential Chinese offensive in Taiwan within the next two years. The figure of 3.5 per cent of GDP was revealed by a US Department of Defence readout released on Sunday as the amount requested for Australia to increase its spending to, a major increase from the Albanese government's prospect of 2.33 per cent. Speaking to Sky News on Monday morning, Ms Lambie said the additional funding would be a 'disgusting waste' of money. Senator Jacqui Lambie has hit out at US Secretary of Defence Pete Hegseth's request for additional military spending and pointed to the ADF 'personnel crisis' as Australia's primary national security concern. Picture: NewsWire/ David Clark 'Just ask Donald Trump to give us our money back for our submarines, mate,' Ms Lambie said. 'But look, now it'd be nice to lift our defence spending, there is no doubt about that, things are pretty tough out there at the moment but … we waste so much money in defence procurement and that's where we should be looking. 'You've only got to see those submarines, mate. Four billion dollars so far and we haven't got one scrap of bloody steel sitting in a harbour yet ready to go. I mean, that is just disgusting waste at its best.' Ms Lambie said there was a 'personnel crisis' with hiring and retention in the ADF which the Tasmanian MP considered the 'biggest problem' concerning Australia's national security. Asked what Australia should do about China's potential invasion of Taiwan by 2027, and whether Hegseth's request from Australia was justified, Ms Lambie compared the Australian army with China's PLA. 'I don't know, have you seen the size of the Chinese army? That's the first thing. And the second thing is this, have you seen the condition that ours is in?' she said. 'This is a problem that we've had … We have a personnel crisis in our military and something needs to be done. 'The only way young people are gonna go and join is when people in that uniform go out there and brag how great that job is. And right now, until you get the right mentoring, and you get right leadership in our defence, that is not going to turn around tomorrow.' Ms Lambie said there was a 'personnel crisis' with hiring and retention in the ADF which the Tasmanian MP considered the 'biggest problem' concerning Australia's national security. Picture: Annette Dew Assistant Foreign Minister Matt Thistlethwaite said the Australian government was increasing its defence spend by $50 billion over the decade, which included the AUKUS agreement. Pictured is US nuclear-powered submarine USS Minnesota in Darwin Harbour. Picture: Pema Tamang Pakhrin Hegseth nudged Australia over the weekend to boost funding to 3.5 per cent of GDP and warned China could make a move on Taiwan by 2027 – a timeline Sky News considered in its documentary Are We Ready For War? In his address at the summit, Mr Hegseth echoed the Trump administration's motto of maintaining 'peace through strength' and stressed the importance of restoring the 'warrior ethos'. "There's no reason to sugar coat it. The threat China poses is real, and it could be imminent," Mr Hegseth said, in some of his strongest comments on the Communist nation since he took office in January. Asked what help Australia could give to the US, Ms Lambie said she did not believe there was 'much'. 'We are absolutely exhausted. 20 years we followed them into the Middle East. We are still picking up the pieces from that and we will be picking that up, I reckon, for the next five years, without doubt,' she said. 'Right now, our troops are not in the condition to be in a war zone. Okay, maybe peacekeeping, but sure as hell not in a War Zone, mate. No way in hell.' Assistant Foreign Minister Matt Thistlethwaite joined Sky News and said the Australian government was increasing its defence spend over the next three years by $10.5 billion and $50 billion over the decade, which included the AUKUS agreement. 'We'll make decisions based on what we believe is in Australia's best interest. But we're doing that in partnership with our most important strategic allies. And that includes the United States and the UK,' he said. In response, Liberal Senator Hollie Hughes said 3.5 per cent was a 'considerable jump' in defence spending but argued that she did not think Australians could currently put their hand on their hearts and 'feel confident'. 'This is a government who had absolutely no idea that China was performing live fire exercises off our coast or having spy ships circumnavigate around our nation. The federal government has two roles, keeping the national economy strong and keeping Australians safe,' she said. 'The reality, is our part of the world, Indo-Pacific, is where there is a lot of action, a lot of concerns and a lot of muscling up by China.' Ms Hughes said the Prime Minister 'might like being Beijing's handsome boy' but he needed to 'stand up for Australians' and ensure defence was prepared for the worst. 'The Prime Minister is more interested in removing HECS debt to buy votes as opposed to investing in our nation's future,' she said. 'I think this government needs to have a serious look at what its priorities are to keep Australians safe, both economically and strategically in defence.' Australian Strategic Policy Institute (ASPI) defence strategy senior analyst Malcolm Davis said Mr Hegseth's intervention in Australia's military budget benchmark was 'perfectly correct' and referenced his organisation's report which suggested making 3 per cent the minimum. Mr Davis said the Defence Secretary's call to increase defence spending 'as soon as possible' was due to the 'dire' strategic circumstances Australia faced. 'We can't afford to say, 'oh, well, we'll get to 3 or 3. 5 per cent in 10 years'. No, it's got to be in the year or so, because the strategic circumstances that we're facing are so dire, so dangerous, that we cannot afford a leisurely rise up to 2.33 per cent, which is what the government's talking about, let alone anything more,' he said. Dr Davis said China was 'deadly serious' about moving on Taiwan as its military has undergone rapid modernisation, rehearsals for blockading Taiwan, as well as President Xi Jinping telling the People's Liberation Army it needed to 'be ready to invade' by 2027. In light of Ms Lambie's comments, that the ADF was depleted in personnel and resources, the ASPI defence strategy expert said Australia could still do an 'awful lot' if China jumped on Taiwan and the US asked for help. 'We can offer Australian military bases for the US and its allies to operate from. We're going to have US submarines operating out of Fremantle as part of Submarine Rotation Force-West under AUKUS. We can boost our investment in the guided weapons and explosive ordnance enterprise to start producing munitions at a much more rapid rate than what is currently planned for. 'And we can actually operate alongside in a combat role with certain types of military forces that we already have in terms of air power, strike operations and special forces. 'There's an awful lot that we can do that I think would be valuable to the US.'
