Canberra sessions run across 2 September and 3 September
The Public Inquiry into AUKUS opened its Canberra hearings on 2 September 2026, with sessions scheduled across two days at the Australian Centre for Christianity and Culture in Barton.
Organisers set hearings for Wednesday 2 September and Thursday 3 September after demand to speak exceeded one day. Proceedings are due to run from 10am to 5pm at 15 Blackall Street, Barton.
A doorstop with lead commissioner Peter Garrett and other AUKUS commissioners was scheduled for 9:45am on 2 September before the first hearing began.
Witnesses listed for Canberra include Admiral (Retd) Peter Briggs, whom organisers describe as Australia’s foremost submarine expert, along with former defence minister and former US ambassador Kim Beazley.
Academic experts, federal political leaders and prominent national organisations are also due to give evidence during the two-day program.
More than 700 submissions lodged
The inquiry is taking written submissions and holding public hearings in most capital cities. It has received more than 700 written submissions so far.
Earlier hearings have already been held in Melbourne, Fremantle, Adelaide, Sydney, Newcastle, Wollongong and Brisbane.
Garrett said Canberra residents would also be able to put their views on the AUKUS deal alongside invited speakers, subject experts and other prominent Australians.
He said: “AUKUS is the most expensive Defence acquisition ever which will impact generations to come, and yet the commitment to spend nearly $400 billion on eight nuclear powered submarines has failed to receive any serious parliamentary scrutiny.”
The inquiry is framed around a central question: whether AUKUS will keep Australia safe, and at what cost.
Organisers also put the value of the pact at $368 billion in material for the Canberra hearings, while Garrett’s comments referred to nearly $400 billion for eight nuclear-powered submarines.
People who cannot attend in Barton can watch the proceedings through the inquiry’s YouTube livestream.
The hearings are part of a crowdfunded, independent national process examining AUKUS.
