John Blackburn Consulting Services Pty Ltd
MEDIA INTERVIEWS AND ARTICLES
2026
Channel 7 Sunrise program 2 April 2026 - PM's primetime address sparks fuel crisis debate
SBS News online 2 April 2026 - Strait of Hormuz tensions may linger for months after US exit from Iran
ABC 7.30 1 April 2026 - PM address to the nation and commentary on implications
Renew Economy EnergyInsiders podcast 1 April 2026 - Is fuel rationing inevitable?
Channel 9 Afternoon News 1 April 2026 - Discussion about upcoming PM’s address to the nation, and what could be expected
Channel 7 Sunrise program 31 March 2026 - Fuel crisis: Motorists to continue paying high prices for ‘about a week’ as excise cut comes into effect
ABC News TV 30 March 2026 - Commentary on PM National Cabinet fuel announcements
Sky News with Keiran Gilbert 30 March 2026 - Rise in interest in electric trucks
ABC Radio AM 30 March 2026 - National Cabinet to meet amid fuel crisis
Sky News Business Weekend 29 March - The Middle East conflict exposes fuel supply chain weakness
Channel 10 Evening News 28 March 2026 - Albanese Announces New Security Powers To Secure Fuel Supply In Australia
Channel 7 Sunrise program 28 March 2026 - Government 'running around like headless chooks' in fuel crisis
Australian Financial Review 28 March 2026 - ‘It will affect everything’: This was the week the war hit home
Channel 7 Sunrise program 26 March 2026 - Fuel crisis threatens Australian economy amid Middle East conflict
The New York Times 25 March 2026 - For Australia’s Farmers, Fuel Crisis Comes at ‘Worst Possible Time’
news.com.au 24 March 2026 - ‘Very worried’: Defence analyst outlines five options for Australia in fuel crisis
7AM Podcast 24 March 2026 - Covid-level crisis? How Australia ignored fuel warnings
The Daily Mail 23 March 2026 - War exposes the shocking truth about the oil beneath our feet - and how Australia sleepwalked into a fuel crisis
ABC News Radio Drive 23 March 2026 - Fuel crisis, politicians, and the IEA
ABC Victorian Country Hour 23 March 2026 - A former military leader warns of the risk to Australia's food security if supply lines are cut
ABC Victorian Country Hour 23 March 2026 Bonus Audio
Channel 7 Sunrise program 23 March 2026 - PM faces fuel crisis as security targets missed
Channel 9 Evening News 22 March 2026 - Panic buying and fuel shortages
7News Australia, The Issue 21 March 2026 - John Blackburn on the dangers of the Iran war for Australia and national resilience
The Point, 20 March 2026 - The Attacks on Iran hurt us all
Channel 7 Sunrise program 20 March 2026 - Expert argues Australians ‘let down’ by government on fuel crisis as supply concerns ripple beyond petrol
Channel 9 Evening News 18 March 2026 - Middle East impact on fuel supplies, National Cabinet fuel crisis comments
Australian Financial Review 18 March 2026 - Strategic fleet delays leave nation more vulnerable to fuel shocks
Defence Connect 17 Mar 26 - CONTESTED GROUND: The fragility of Australia’s energy ecosystem
Nights with John Stanley Radio 2GB 17 March 2026 - Supply chains, resilience, rationing, risk assessment and national security, interview from 07:24 - 28:16
The Radio National Hour with Fran Kelly 17 March 2026 - Our bowser panic masks a bigger conversation to be had about where we source our energy
ABC News Video 17 March 2026 - Could Middle East war lead to fuel rationing?
ABC News Online 16 March 2026 - Fuel rationing a chance in Australia if war continues to trim global oil supplies, experts say
The Briefing with Nararsha Belling 16 March 2026 - The fuel warning Governments ignored a decade ago.
The Jaimee Rogers Show Sky News, 15 March 2026 - NRMA reports, supply chains, diesel risks, Andrew Hastie and Angus Taylor
Channel 10 News 14 March 2026 - Current situation could have been avoided, implement an Ethanol mandate, conduct a new NESA
Australian Financial Review 13 March 2026 - Government in final stages of negotiations with oil refiners
ABC News 24 Joe O’Brien Show 12 March 2026 - IEA release, fuel storage, NESA, rationing, alternatives/solutions
ABC Radio AM 12 March 2026 - Servo crackdown amid renewables push
The Karl Stefanovic Show 12 March 2026 - The Fuel Supply Story Government Didn’t Want Told
News.com.au 12 March 2026 - Australian officials told to ‘keep quiet’ about fuel supply problems.
Nights with John Stanley Radio 2GB 9 March 2026 - Fuel Security, NRMA reports and implications of Middle East war, interview from 05:04 - 16:30
ABC Radio Mornings with Hamish Macdonald 9 March 2026 - Risks and vulnerabilities of fuel supply from Middle East, interview from 18:36 - 25:30
Second Line of Defence Article Jan 26 - John Blackburn and the Resilience Challenge
2025
Resilience and Reality: Australia’s Strategic Challenges Podcast 29 Dec 2025 - hosted by the National Institute for Deterrence Studies
ABC News online 3 December 2025 - Australia's oil refineries will need government support to avoid a reliance on fuel imports
Fly Podcast with Richard De Crespigny Oct 25 - John Blackburn On The Threats To National Resilience
Augmented vs. Artificial Intelligence: A Key Challenge for Democratic Societies, Interview by Dr Robbin Laird, September 2025
Association of Professional Futurists Podcast Aug 25 - Australia’s Strategic Blind Spot: Lessons in Long-Term Thinking from John Blackburn’s APF Talk
Beef Central Magazine 4 June 2025 - Fuel Blind: National security expert warns Australia still ignoring a crisis
Vudoo Commerce Media Matters Podcast - May 2025 - Man or Machine? Advanced AI: Authentically Intelligent
AGWatchers Apple Podcast - 1 May 2025 - Australia the Complacent Nation
AGWatchers Spotify Podcast - 1 May 2025 - Australia the Complacent Nation
AMIC MPEC Conference - 8 April 2025 - Australia’s National Resilience, do we understand our risks and vulnerabilties …
ABC Radio Nightlife Program - 1 April 2025 - Australia's Fuel Security
Newswire 15 March 2025 - ‘Stop’: Qantas boss’ dark warning to Aussies
Ron Wilson 2SM Sydney - 7 March 2025 - Securing Liquid Fuel Stocks
ABC News - 7 January 2025 - Australia's fuel security falling short as 'war-game' report, released under FOI, reveals vulnerabilities
2024
ABC TV interview 8 Oct 24 - The ASLCG's Protect, Prevent & Prepare A Climate & Security Action Plan For Australia.
SBS Podcast 8 Oct 2024 - Defence officials say government's response to climate and security is "too hot to handle"
LinkedIn Post July 2024 - Is Australia, in fact, secure in 2024, or is Australia a complacent nation adrift in the South Pacific?
Opérationnels SLDS Magazine article for the Eurosatory Exhibition in Paris in June 2024 - Australia a complacent nation adrift in the South Pacific?
LinkedIn Post April 2024 - In the case of AUSKUS, what does the UK actually add to our regional security?
2023
Canberra Times 15 Dec 23 - Food shortage, starvation, civil war: the climate math is simple
ASCLG Parliamentary Press Conference Statement 13 Sep 23 - ‘Full alert’: National strategy to combat climate security risks urgently needed, say former defence & security leaders
ABC Radio Victorian Country Hour 3 Aug 23 - Food security should play a greater role in Australia's national security plans ( interview at 38 min mark.)
Canberra Times 18 June 2023 - Defence review reflects a profound failure of leadership
Pearls and Irritations Journal 29 May 23 - The Defence Strategic Review Strategy vacuum
Defence Connect 22 May 23 - THE DEFENCE STRATEGIC REVIEW 2023 - We now have a DSR, but where is the National Risk Assessment, Security Strategy and the plan ?
NSW Farm Writers Association 26 May 23 - Agriculture, Food Security and Supply Chain Resilience - How real is Australia’s food security?
ASH Cloud Podcast 26 Feb 23 : Agriculture is not just about food security, it’s about national and regional security …
Mind the GAP - Dialogues on Artificial Intelligence Podcast 14 Feb 23 - Artificial Intelligence promises great benefits for national security, but the challenge is how to adapt this new technology to sophisticated weapon systems.
2022
Safeguarding Australia Summit 17 Nov 2022 - National Resilience and Supply Chains in the face of Geopolitical Instability and Climate Change
Second Line of Defense: 21 Oct 2022 - Shaping a Way Ahead for Australian Defence: It is Not Just About ADF Modernization
Victorian Farmers Federation Conference 14 October 2022 - Food Security and Supply Chains Presentation
ABC World Today 21 Apr 22 - Fuel supply running dangerously low
KAP Podcast - 24 Mar 2022 - Interview with Robbie Katter re National Security and Resilience
Sky News interview 23 Mar 22 - Climate change is ‘going to get a lot worse’
Presentation to the March 2022 Air and Space Symposium - National Resilience and Innovation in Australia
ABC TV Interview 21 Mar 22 - Defence analyst warns Australia 'too reliant' on imported oil
ABC Online News 21 Mar 22 - Foreign oil dependence a 'massive vulnerability' as defence experts call for EVs, green transport
AG Watchers Podcast 16 Mar 22 - The Great Fuel Crisis of 2022 and Beyond
2GB Radio Interview 6 Mar 22 - Lessons that Australia should learn from the conflict in Ukraine
2021
The Guardian 16 Dec 21 - National fuel supply at risk due to AdBlue shortage, Australian defence expert warns
Alaska World Affairs Council Discussion 11 Dec 21 - National Resilience is a National Security Issue
ABC Radio 20 Oct 2021 - James Valentine Interview - Is Australia equipped to deal with modern challenges?
2GB Radio Interview 19 Oct 2021 - Australia’s vulnerabilities rise’ says new report
ABC News 19 Oct 2021 - Federation 'ill-equipped' to deal with 21st-century challenges as Australia's vulnerabilities rise
Second Line of Defense 14 Oct 2021 - Meeting the Challenge: Australia’s Poor Energy Systems Resilience
First 5000: 5 Oct 2021 - Australia – A Complacent Nation
Second Line of Defense: 4 Oct 2021 - An Australian Strategy for National Resilience
Engineers Australia 1 Sep 2021 - Engineers required to build resilience beyond COVID-19
ABC Radio Interview 9 Jul 2021 - The World Today, Calls intensify for Australia to produce mRNA vaccines.
2GB Interview Michael McLaren & John Blackburn, 10 June - USA to step up manufacturing in an effort to match competition from China
ABC Radio News 17 May 2021 - Concerns around Australia's fuel security alleviated by Federal funding boost
MySec TV 23 April 2021 - Climate Security Threat, Former Defence Leaders Sound Alarm
Canberra Times Opinion Piece - 21 April 2021 - Australia must learn the lessons of this pandemic when it comes to climate change
ABC Radio National Breakfast with Fran Kelly Interview 21 April 2021 - The Australian Security leaders Climate Group
News.com.au 20 April 2021 - ‘Disaster alley’: New threats Australia faces
The West Australian Newspaper - 20 April 2021, Former Security Leaders Unite For Climate
KAP Podcast 24 Mar 2022 - Interview by Robbie Katter re National Security and Resilience
Australian Financial Review, 19 March 2021 - Vaccine Challenges Another Chapter in the Same Story, James Thomson
The West Australian, 18 March 2021 - Most Aussies support electric car subsidy, Rebecca Gredle
2GB Interview Michael McLaren & John Blackburn, 5 March 2021 - Scott Morrison to launch 10-year critical minerals ‘value-add plan’
2GB Interview Michael McLaren & John Blackburn, 12 February 2021 - Aussie Fuel Security at risk with the closing of Exxon Altona
ABC News Online, Video Blog, 11 February 2021 Fears for Australia’s fuel security following decision to close Altona refinery
2GB Interview, The Chris Smith Show, Michael McLaren & John Blackburn, 2 January 2021 - Australia’s ability to be self-sufficient
2020
Informa Connect Oct 2020 - Australia needs a military approach to liquid fuel security – John Blackburn AO
2GB Radio Interview 15 Sep 20 - Government announces measures to improve fuel security.
Doing Disasters Differently: The Podcast Aug 20: Episode #5: Changing the disaster language to “our preparedness and resilience”
Australian Institute of International Affairs July 2020: Australia’s National Resilience
Business Now Asia Pacific interview of 8 July 2020 with IIER-A Chair John Blackburn - Governments not fit for purpose
Australian Defence Magazine Podcast July 2020 - National Resilience - Senator David Fawcett, Chair of the Parliamentary Joint Standing Committee on Foreign Affairs, Defence & Trade and John Blackburn, Chair IIER-A, are interviewed by ADM’s Managing Editor Katherine Ziesing and Grant McHerron.
Business Now Asia Pacific interview of 8 July 2020 with IIER-A Chair John Blackburn - Australia’s National Resilience
Coast Business Radio Interview 3 Jun 20 - National Resilience and Supply Chains
Ch 7 Weekend Sunrise 3 May 20 - Dare to Prepare
Ch 9 Today Show 29 Apr 20 - COVID-19 Warnings Ignored?
ABC Online News - 29 Apr 20 - Think of coronavirus as a test run: Australian military leaders warn we must prepare for worse
ABC 7:30 Report 28 Apr 20 - Confidential report predicted how long it would take for essential services to break down during a major crisis
Defence Connect Op-Ed 14 Apr 20 - Australia’s fuel (in)security and our lack of national resilience
LinkedIn 7 Apr 20 - US blocks millions of N95 face masks headed for Canada - Remember we have a 90% medical import dependency
Sky News 5 April 2020 - Over reliance on China 'must never happen again’
LinkedIn 4 Apr 20 - Supply Chain Security ? - time to understand what happens in a crisis.
The Australian Article 3 April 2020 - Ben Packham - How this pandemic will shift our defence posture
SLDinfo.com Article 25 Mar 20 - “No-one Could Anticipate This”: A Reality Check
ABC 7:30 Report Interview (3:45 min point) 23 Mar 20: Australians worried they will run out of life-saving drugs
Defense.info Article 24 Mar 20 - Maritime Trade Dependencies and Risks: The Australian Fuel Security Case
The Mandarin 17 Mar 2020 - Australia’s medicine supply chain is vulnerable
Defense.info Article Mar 20 - Maritime Trade Dependencies and Risks: An Introduction
Defence Connect Article 3 Mar 20 - Perfect storm reveals startling vulnerability and declining ‘national resilience’
Defence Connect Podcast 28 Feb 20 - INSIGHT: National resilience – John Blackburn AO, Institute for Integrated Economic Research – Australia
Australian Financial Review 18 Feb 20 - Australia dangerously dependent on medical imports
SLDinfo.com Interview Feb 20 - Australia’s Medicine Supply Chain Vulnerabilities
SLDinfo.com Article / ADBR Video Feb 20 - Information Architecture Enabling National Security
Defence Connect Interview Jan 20 - National security is the result of national resilience
2019
The Driven Podcast Dec 19 - EVs, range anxiety and fuel security
Defense.info Article Nov 19 - The Gray Zone is Not Just an Away Game: We Are In Risk of “Losing Without Fighting”
Australian Defence Magazine Nov 19 - An Integrated Information Architecture is a national security issue
Understanding Disaster Risk - National Forums Video - A way to think about climate change
Australian Defence Business Review TV - The Challenge of Maritime Trade and Security in Australia
JOY Radio Station Interview - 27 Sep 19: What the Saudi Arabia attacks mean for us and for the region
2GB Alan Jones Show 24 Sep 19 - quoted the Fuel security reports.
CH9 Today Show 21 Sep 19 - Discussing the basic facts regarding Australia’s Fuel Security
ABC online news 19 Sep 19 - Australia's fuel supplies vulnerable if Middle East conflict cuts supply
ABC Radio - The World Today 17 Sep 19 - No energy risk assessment leaves us in the dark
The Australian 17 Sep 19 - Time to stay calm on Iran, says Frydenberg, despite perfect storm
ABC Radio National Interview 6 Aug 19 - Response to Energy Minister’s announcement re accessing US strategic oil stocks
Sydney Morning Herald 6 Aug 19: - Fuel deal won't lessen risk of pumps running dry
Defense.info Article Jul 19 - F-35 2.0: The Strategic Significance of Sustained Engagement
Australian Defence Magazine Jun 19 - Are our Assumptions about Climate Change and Environmental Degradation a risk to National Security?
Create Digital / Engineers Australia interview May 19: In an emergency, Australia might not have enough fuel to meet its needs
Defense.info Article April 19: The Central Role of IT and Communications in an Australian National Security Strategy
SLDinfo.com Article Apr 19 - A “Plan Jericho” for Australian Energy Security: Leveraging the Hydrogen Energy Opportunity
Engineers Australia Magazine Mar 19 - Engineers can help prevent Australia’s energy security from slipping away
The Australian Financial Review 1 Mar 19 - Bill Shorten pledges to build a national fuel reserve
Channel 9 News 28 Feb 19 - Interview re Labor pledge to set up federal-owned fuel reserve.
Defense.info Article Feb 19: The Need for an Australian National Security Strategy: The Economic Dimension
Australian Defence magazine Feb 19: Australia’s Economic Security: Is there a problem ?
SLDinfo.com Article Feb 19: The Australian F-35 Decision and the German Tornado Replacement Decision
Defense.info Article 2019: Shaping a 21st Century Resilient Defense Infrastructure: The Case of Energy Security in Australia
ABC News Article Jan 19: Government accused of doing 'bugger all' to shore up Australia's fuel security
Malcom McLaren 2GB Interview - Feb19: Australia’s onshore fuel stockpiles reach worrying lows
The Australian Jan 19: Red light flashing over fuel security
2018
Engineers Australia Magazine Dec18 - Topping up our reserves won’t ensure fuel security, expert says
MUA Report 2018: Australia’s Fuel Security - Running on Empty
Australian Defence magazine 2018: The 5th Generation Information Management Environment: Enabler or Roadblock?
Australian Financial Review Oct 18 - Senate warned over Australia's lack of fuel security
SLDinfo.com Interview 2018: F-35 2.0 and Changing the Defense Eco-System
Australian Defence magazine 2018: Energy Security: Is there a problem?
SLDinfo.com Interview 2018: Leveraging Mobile Security: How To Shape a Way Ahead for a 5th Generation Military
ABC News May 2018: Fact check: Does Australia have 3 weeks of petrol in reserve?
Defense.info Article 2018: Working the Challenge of Energy Security for Australia
SLDinfo.com Interview 2018: Shaping Infrastructure for Resilience In Protecting the Liberal Democratic Nations: The Case of Energy
2017
Global Farmer Article - Jun 17 - A Reason for Bed Wetting – Australia has less than 30 day’s supply of fuel and oil.
SLDinfo.com Interview Aug 17 - Assessing Risk to Building A Credible Defense: The Exogenous Factors
SLDinfo.com Interview 2017 - The Challenge of Designing an Integrated 21st Century Combat Force
SLDinfo.com Interview 2017: Building in Integration: Reshaping Training and Encompassing Development
2016
Institute For Regional Security Security Challenges Journal 2016: 2016 Defence White Paper -The Future of Aerospace Forces
2015
SLDinfo.com Interview 2015: Plan Jericho: John Blackburn Explains the RAAF Approach at the Copenhagen Airpower Symposium
2014
SLDinfo.com Interview 2014: The Australian Military and Logistics: When Preparedness Equals Survival
Operationnels-SLDS Interviews 2014: Addressing Rapid Reaction Logistics / When preparedness equals survival
2013
Money News Radio Interview Feb 13 - Ross Greenwood speaks to the author of Australia's Liquid Fuel Security Retired Air Vice-Marshall John Blackburn AO
2011
Australian Defence Magazine 2011: From The Source: Mr John Blackburn, AO Strategy Consultant