Vic ship job cuts Labor's fault: Turnbull

The delayed naval ship-building program is costing jobs at a Melbourne shipyard but the prime minister says it's the previous government's fault.

BAE Systems has already cut 99 jobs, with more expected, but Malcolm Turnbull says the Labor government dragged its feet on the issue.

"The mistake the previous government made was they delayed making decisions on the naval ship building program ... inevitably there will be a decline, a dip, in employment before it picks up again," he told 3AW.