Mr Albanese addressed the Lowy Institute in Sydney yesterday in what was effectively a reply to Prime Minister Scott Morrison's east coast submarines base announcement at the same venue on Monday.

He said the Coalition boasted of its Defence spending but the submarine project so far was Australia's "greatest defence procurement disaster", offending Japan then France with billions of dollars wasted and only a "capability gap" in submarine defences to show for it.

IN THE NEWS:

Mr Albanese described the short-list of Newcastle, Port Kembla and Brisbane as "an announcement about an announcement" that was "no doubt driven by an election timetable" given the final choice would not be made until some time next year.

He accused the government of trying to "wedge" Labor on the submarines, given the party's traditional anti-nuclear stance, and said Labor caucus accepted the advice received by party leaders from Defence officials, allowing "bipartisan commitment" less than 24 hours after Monday's announcement.

He also questioned the timing of yesterday's announcement by the Prime Minister of "the largest defence forces boost ever in peacetime" - which critics say was timed to minimise the impact of Mr Albanese's speech - saying Mr Morrison could have announced that when he addressed the Lowy Institute on Monday.

Mr Morrison was in Brisbane yesterday, where floods have shut the Port of Brisbane for four days, raising concerns about its suitability as a base.

Mr Morrison acknowledged Brisbane had "some logistical and technical issues", but in an apparent dig at the "no nukes" position of some Labor councils, including Newcastle, the PM said support from state and local government would be an "important" consideration in base selection.

A union protest against the nuclear announcement is set for 10am today at the Merchant Mariners Memorial on the Foreshore near the Watt Street and Wharf Road roundabout, with Port Kembla unionists expected to travel north.

Last night, Hunter Workers secretary Leigh Shears said the executive and delegates endorsed a resolution confirming they would use "every endeavour" to ensure "Newcastle City Council's long-standing declaration of a nuclear free zone is recognised and supported at all levels of government".

Labor's defence spokesperson, Brendan O'Connor, said after Mr Albanese's speech that the government needed to brief the opposition to "prove this is not just a marketing ploy" and "to answer questions about the way sites sites have been chosen, and who chose them".

After an initial response on Tuesday, the government has not answered further Newcastle Herald questions about the departure from the Navy's original preferences.

On Monday, Employment Minister Stuart Robert said a range of options had been cut to the announced three by Cabinet's national security committee.

He said Defence would now "start to talk and negotiate with the NSW and Queensland state governments" as Canberra "sensibly" worked towards its 2023 decision.

Mr Albanese was welcomed to the Lowy Institute by executive director Michael Fullilove, a one-time adviser to Paul Keating as prime minister, and a noted commentator on US politics, whose 2013 book Rendezvous with Destiny: How Franklin D. Roosevelt and Five Extraordinary Men Took America into the War and into the World won the non-fiction prize at the 2014 NSW Premier's literary awards.

Mr Albanese said national security should be above "partisan politics" and said Labor's election plan promised a stronger defence force, "better and smarter" cyber security, increased self-reliance in manufacturing, a "deepening" of partnerships with our regional neighbours and "real action on climate change".

He said the US and UK realised climate change was "a direct threat to global security" , a position Australia under the Coalition had "diverged" from.

He said Labor and the Biden Democrat administration had "a foreign policy connection".

Asked where Labor would differ from the Coalition on national security, he pointed to a "synergy" between "energy security, climate policy and foreign policy".

Mr Albanese disputed a description of defence spending under the Gillard and Rudd governments as "the lowest since WWII", calling it "a triumph of spin over substance", saying their defence budget was only 0.03 per cent smaller than the Coalition's, measured as a percentage of gross domestic product.

Having earlier reeled off a list of Defence projects he said were cancelled or over-budget or late under the Coalition, he said "you shouldn't get credit for spending money that doesn't produce anything".

Mr Albanese justified higher defence spending by saying the world had changed, saying that China's president Xi Jinping was expected to seek another term in 2023, and Russian president Vladimir Putin - who he had earlier condemned for invading Ukraine - was "also determined to stay" in power.

"In a more insecure world you need to spend more on national security," Mr Albanese said.

He said it was "unwise" to make defence promises from opposition without the benefit of the expert advice available to government, but said Labor would work on a submarine "capability gap" until the nuclear subs were ready - a date originally announced as 2040.

NUKE-CASTLE:

Mr Albanese said some defence experts had suggested fitting Tomahawk cruise missiles to the existing Collins class subs, and he promised a "full defence posture review" should Labor win office.

He said submarines were important defence assets because "unlike a frigate or a plane, they can't be seen, which acts as a deterrent".

A nuclear propelled sub was "much more effective" than the diesel powered Collins class because they were less detectable by the enemy and because they did not to refuel, could stay underwater and out of sight for longer.

Our journalists work hard to provide local, up-to-date news to the community. This is how you can continue to access our trusted content: