Independent MP Dai Le has challenged the Federal Government to back its Australian-made messaging with stronger procurement measures, arguing that domestic manufacturers need a dependable share of government demand rather than promotional campaigns alone.
The federal member for Fowler in New South Wales said Australian manufacturers were being undercut by cheaper imports from countries with lower labour, tax and environmental obligations.
Le’s call follows the $20 million government-backed Made Right Here campaign, which launched nationally in January and ran until 30 June, encouraging consumers and businesses to choose locally manufactured products.
At the campaign’s launch, Industry and Innovation Minister Tim Ayres claimed that if Australian households each spent an additional $10 a week on locally made products, that demand could generate $5 billion in economic activity and create 10,000 jobs.
However, Le argued that encouraging consumers to buy Australian-made products fails to address the lack of reliable demand available to domestic manufacturers through public procurement.
On 29 June, she introduced the Public Governance, Performance and Accountability Amendment (Local Industry Preference) Bill 2026 to Parliament.
Currently before the House of Representatives, the private member’s bill would give domestic manufacturers preference when tendering for specified Commonwealth projects.
It would also require at least 30 percent of the total value of goods used in those projects to consist of products manufactured in Australia.
“That 30 percent is a demand anchor. It lets a manufacturer invest in their people and their capacity, knowing a fair slice of the Commonwealth’s own market is open to them,” she said.
Le argued that government procurement processes continue to disadvantage local manufacturers by placing too much emphasis on price, but fail to account fully for the true economic and strategic value of domestic production.
“The Australian Fashion Council has laid the numbers plainly before us,” she told Parliament.
“Australia imports around 1.4 billion units of clothing a year. Ninety-seven percent of what we wear is made offshore because it is cheaper and affordable. Yet this sector still contributes $2.6 billion a year and supports more than 28,000 manufacturing jobs – 53 percent of them held by women.
“The Commonwealth itself has spent $790 million procuring textiles, clothing and footwear since 2022, with no consistent measure of how much was Australian made. No requirement. No benchmark. No accountability.
“The so-called ‘value for money’ test structurally shuts out the local maker who cannot match offshore labour costs. We have built a system that sends Australian making offshore, and we call it good governance.”
Le warned that these consequences extend beyond the loss of individual contracts, suggesting that a continued dependence on imported goods is threatening Australia’s industrial capability, skilled workforce and supply chain resilience.
The bill follows significant changes to the Commonwealth Procurement Rules, which took effect on 17 November 2025.
Under the revised rules, non-corporate Commonwealth entities must generally invite only Australian businesses to tender for non-panel procurements valued at $10,000 or more but below $125,000.
For construction services, the requirement applies to procurements valued at $10,000 or more but below $7.5 million.
Based on 2024-25 data, the Federal Government estimated that the reforms would give Australian businesses priority access to approximately 31,000 contracts worth almost $2 billion.
However, the existing framework focuses primarily on whether a supplier qualifies as an Australian business rather than whether the goods it supplies are manufactured domestically.
A business that meets the eligibility requirements may still supply imported products, with value for money remaining the main consideration when contracts are awarded.
Le’s proposed bill would go further by adding a product origin requirement, creating a measurable obligation for specified Commonwealth procurement projects.
“If this government truly believes in a future made in Australia, then back it. Not with another slogan, but with a share of the work, a fair go at the tender,” she said.
