"The confidence has gone out of the sector, which means that across the board companies are not attracting investment. The ability to attract major money here is gone for a number of companies, they will have to move their operations overseas," she said.
"I understand that people won't be fans of cutting a billion dollars of funding that was going to be directed towards their sector … But I've got to make calls as a minister and as part of a broader government that is trying to rein in a budget deficit."Several space industry insiders who 7.30 spoke to were concerned the fledging industry wouldn't survive into the future without government support.
Mr Gilmour said space industries in other countries relied on government support to get off the ground and he called on the government in Australia to do the same. "We have been awaiting large investment decisions, postponing our own investment as a result. And now it's become clear that certain projects aren't going to happen. Industry is having to decide whether there's a future sector that they want to invest to grow within. ""I think the literacy, the understanding of space, and the opportunity is not there.
"We are scanning the sub-surface for resources, whether that's critical minerals or water on the moon and Mars," Mr Pearson told 7.30 from Fleet's Adelaide workshop.