1New Zealand is going to order two frigates in the next two days according to newspaper reports, which have been denied by MPs. Is New Zealand going to be anything more than a passive customer in the deal or can we seize on the frigate project, as the Australians have, to build up a defence industry and workforce? The frigate partners say we can, but others believe it is pie in the sky. The belief that New Zealand could ever make money out of defence buying is historically spot on. We've always just bought what we thought we needed, or worse still, what we thought others thought we needed. Those others until recently were the British, but as the world moves, and policy in Wellington shifts, so does the focus. Now, rather than looking a world away for our security, we look much closer to home.

2Studio Interview New Zealand is going to order two frigates in the next two days according to newspaper reports, which have been denied by MPs. Is New Zealand going to be anything more than a passive customer in the deal or can we seize on the frigate project, as the Australians have, to build up a defence industry and workforce?