Liberal councillor Callum Pull put up the motion at Tuesday's meeting calling for the elected council to back a future navy base with an estimated $10 billion price tag and ask the CEO to write to the Prime Minister, Defence Minister, Leader of the Opposition and NSW Premier conveying council's "strong support for the submarine base to be built in Newcastle".

But it was only supported by Independent John Church. The two other Liberal councillors voted against it, with Katrina Wark saying she was supportive of the idea but did not believe council needed to be involved in federal issues, and Jenny Barrie saying there were more important federal issues that needed attention, such as housing.

State Liberal Upper House MP Taylor Martin spoke about the issue in parliament just after the debate, saying council needed to "stay out of the way and don't bugger it up".

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"I make this point and I make this plea here tonight, particularly to representatives of local council and local council wards across the City of Newcastle: stick to your knitting - roads, rates and rubbish," he said.

"Do not insert yourself in a very important area of policy for the future of Australia, where it is not needed local government to be.

"Let the ADF go through their process and if we are fortunate to be selected as the successful site in Newcastle we will enjoy decades of economic benefit.

In the council chamber, the motion was also heavily condemned by Green and Labor councillors.

Greens councillor John Mackenzie didn't mince words saying the subs plan had no detail and the technology had "unmitigable risks and hazards that put at risk unnecessarily, the lives of thousands of people in our area".

"We don't know anything about this proposal," he said. "We don't know about a scope, its size. We don't know anything about its environmental impact. We don't know anything about the type of submarines... We don't know anything about the risks. We don't know anything about how the risks are mitigated. We don't know anything about the costs, or the benefits. We don't know about the contribution that it's going to make to the economy. We don't know if it's feasible in our port.

"All we have is a hastily written media release from the Prime Minister and a series of slogans... and I think the telling phrase was countless jobs. Countless jobs is the phrase that you use when you've done so little due diligence, and so little preparation, you have no idea how many jobs will be generated, you just assume that there may be some.

"We're also being asked to consider putting this submarine base adjacent to the world's largest ammonium nitrate stockpile, and large quantities of fuel storage next to a proposed gas hub, next to a proposed hydrogen facility in an earthquake zone, next to one of Australia's most strategic air force bases.

"That's not how you build an economic transition for a city. That's how a cartoon character builds a doomsday device. It's an extraordinary proposal.

"I find it difficult to find the capacity to take it seriously. But that's the worst part about it. It is deadly serious."

Cr Mackenzie also pointed out Newcastle had been a nuclear free zone since 1982.

But Cr Pull said that was 40 years ago during the middle of the Cold War.

"It was a different time, it was a different era," he said.

Cr Pull said the proposal was about jobs, had the backing of both Federal Labor and Liberal and initial construction was due to be completed by the end of next year.

"It is absolutely vital that we take this stance now," he said.

"We should be absolutely embracing the fact that there is going to be a high employing east coast submarine base somewhere and the opportunity is here before the council to say that we want it."

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