Taxpayers set to foot eye-watering bill after dropped diplomatic deal

Taxpayers have already been slugged more than $2.5 billion for Australia pulling out of a submarine deal early with the French government, with the figure likely to rise even higher.

Defence officials told a Senate estimates hearing $2.56 billion was spent to the end of February as part of the negotiation of termination costs with Naval Group and Lockheed Martin.

The French submarine deal was controversially scrapped last year in favour of…