Mining magnate and cattle rancher Gina Rinehart has called on the government to “drill, frugally, drill and dig, frugally, dig” and use the proceeds to vastly improve defenses, including an Israeli “iron dome” missile decoy system.

Rinehart presented a personal defence and economic plan for Australia at News Corp’s bush summit in Townsville on Friday, calling for the reintroduction of compulsory national service for “all biological males … under, say, 53” with voluntary service for “biological females”.

Rinehart, who sponsored a series of summits held across Australia, urged the government to install an iron dome system on Australia’s northern islands and relocate the Department of Defense to northern Australia. A refinery and manufacturing base would be built there to supply defense equipment.

In the pre-recorded speech, Rinehart said the government should invest in smart sea mines, “lots and lots” of war drones, increase naval capacity and move maintenance to northern Australia so ships don’t have to sail back and forth to bases in the south.

“You might be wondering, how are we going to pay for this? Simple, we need to reduce government waste — and there’s a lot of it — and we need to drill, baby, drill and dig, baby, dig,” she said.

She advocated the abolition of fuel taxes, payroll taxes, permit fees and stamp duty.

“Wouldn’t that lower the cost of living?” she asked.

Rinehart also advocated the reintroduction of special economic zones in Northern Australia with tax breaks to encourage investment.

“There used to be tax rebates for people who worked in the north,” she told the Townsville crowd. “Everyone over the age of 26 (parallel) deserves this. I suggest you pursue this to reinstate it quickly.”

Rinehart expressed his concern about people living in poverty and struggling due to the cost of living crisis.

Her economic solutions included allowing all recipients of government benefits to do unlimited paid work without any ‘burdensome’ paperwork.

“Too many people in our country are being unfairly put on a ‘heat or eat’ basis with these government restrictions,” she said. “This is unacceptable. Our politicians must take immediate action.”

She said the country was facing a labour shortage, which she blamed on immigration, making it “difficult for our own Australians to work if they want to”.

Without providing evidence, Rinehart also blamed migrants for the high cost of housing, an alleged increase in crime and the pressure on the health system.

She warned that Australia was going ‘down’, not ‘up’.

“We want to hear from politicians that they are the leaders who deliver the up,” Rinehart said. “We’ve certainly had enough of the down. The down has left a lot of parents worried about the future of their children and grandchildren, and a lot of people in agriculture worried about whether the agricultural sector can survive. The down will continue if we don’t reduce the government approvals and (bureaucracy) that add costs and delays.”

Rinehart said she would offer more ideas for improving Australia as the bush summit event moved around the country. In Townsville, a military city, her focus was on the economy and defending Australia from foreign attack.

“If we don’t have our country, what future do we have? This should be the most important duty of our governments. Boy, have they let us all down.”

Rinehart’s speech was introduced by Queensland Nationals MP Keith Pitt, who praised her “spectacular” contribution as the country’s largest taxpayer and as a major philanthropist.

“She is a great Australian who continues to invest in our country despite all the politicians, MPs and policies that tend to get in the way with red and green frills,” Pitt said.