The Australian Maritime College is confident its strong bid for a maritime training program will break the stalemate on a political tug of war that has emerged over the service.
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Queensland State Development Minister Michael Healy announced $10,000 for TAFE Queensland to assist in its bid for the Pacific Maritime Training Services Program, which is run by the AMC.
The AMC's licence for the program ends in December, but a spokesperson for the institution said it had placed a 'strong bid' to continue its agreement.
Member for Bass Bridget Archer said she believed the home of the program was in the region and she would advocate for it to remain.
"The home of the program is here in Northern Tasmania and there is no doubt that here it should stay," Ms Archer said.
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"The Pacific Maritime Training Services program has a long and proud history in our state. The AMC has a long-established reputation as the hub for quality and world-class maritime training."
The program is run for participants of 12 Pacific nations and is funded by the federal government, which gifted 21 guardian class patrol boats for use within the program.
About 2300 participants have graduated from the program.
"The Australian Maritime College is the country's premier maritime education institution, ranked number one in the world by the International Association of Maritime Universities," a spokesperson for the AMC said.
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"All training is delivered by Defence and civil maritime specialists, and the depth of expertise and cutting-edge teaching facilities used to deliver the courses is unmatched in Australia."
It is not the first time a political conflict has brewed over maritime training in Australia. In 2017, then-federal Defence Minister Christopher Pyne came under fire for his plan to establish a maritime technical college in Adelaide, in his electorate.
The college was shaping up to be a direct competitor to the AMC but has now partnered with the Tasmanian-based institution to funnel students and partner with industry.
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Education and Defence Minister Jeremy Rockliff said on Tuesday Queensland's boat had already sailed when it came to putting Queensland on the maritime map.
"Over the last 28 years, AMC Search has perfected a unique multi-nation training program that has successfully trained almost 2300 people from 12 Pacific Island countries and Timor-Leste in all aspects of running patrol boats," he said.
"Furthermore, Tasmania's reputation as a world leading maritime and defence precinct will grow following the memorandum of understanding signed by Thales Australia and the AMC in 2019 which will see state of the art trials and a test facility developed in Tasmania for submarine and ship sonar systems using Tasmania's unique deep lakes.
"Frankly, Queensland has missed the boat and cannot match 28 years of action, experience and expertise in Tasmania, coupled with our natural marine advantages."