Australian defence anchored by cost of new subs

As Australia prepares to commit to its most expensive defence project yet, military chiefs are being warned not to get out of their depth when buying new submarines.

Defence officials will be burning the midnight oil at their Canberra headquarters in the coming months, hatching plans for an all-out assault on the nation's purse strings.

Their mission will be to persuade their political masters that billions of taxpayer dollars should be committed towards building their preferred replacement for Australia's troublesome and costly Collins-class submarines.

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