Nola Marino (Forrest, Liberal Party) Share this | Hansard source

I am particularly proud to speak on this Veterans’ Affairs Legislation Amendment (Budget And Other Measures) Bill 2016 this afternoon. My mother was a war widow. Her husband was in the 2nd/28th Battalion and was killed while serving in New Guinea. So matters to do with our Defence Force members and veterans are very close to my heart.

I want to acknowledge the outstanding work that is done by RSLs right around Australia and particularly those in my electorate of Forest. I also want to acknowledge, because I take part in the Defence Force program on a regular basis, this afternoon that I have Warrant Officer Sean Campbell spending some time with me in the House this week, in the reciprocal program, learning about the role of a member of parliament. I have had firsthand access to our outstanding people—they are not just great Defence Force members, they are absolutely outstanding people.

The launch of the program was held here today in Parliament House. I would encourage all members of this place to take the opportunity to spend time with our Defence Force members on deployment or wherever the opportunity comes. It gives you firsthand experience of what life is like wherever our Defence Force members are serving. You get to see how well they are trained and how passionate they are about their work. It is also good for them to have access to members of parliament, and they can talk directly to us about the issues they face whilst on deployment as well as issues faced by their families.

I am particularly pleased to talk about this bill today but, more importantly, to talk about the people who will be better off as a result of measures in this bill. We do recognise very well that our current and former Defence Force members develop a range of mental and physical conditions and the earlier they seek treatment the more effective the likely health and other outcomes will be. So streamlining the process is particularly important. That is one thing contained in this bill. Delay causes uncertainty and greater stress on the applicant veteran, especially if that has to come from a range of government departments and sources. That is the sort of thing this bill is amending and it is contained throughout this bill.

Simplifying the process is particularly relevant when you consider that around 67,000 additional current and former permanent members of the Defence Force will become eligible to receive NLHC treatment for mental-health conditions, should they have need of it as a result of this. The proposed changes will remove administrative and financial barriers to accessing mental-health care for past and present Defence Force members and will allow them to seek treatment as quickly as possible. It is an important part in achieving good long-term outcomes and increases the likelihood of an individual returning to a healthy and productive life. That is what we want to achieve, whether it is as a result of post-traumatic stress disorder, anxiety, depression, alcohol-use disorders or substance-use disorders. They are some of the issues that the government, in our budget, committed $37.9 million to extend eligibility for.

The changes proposed by the government in this bill will provide much greater support for our veterans and their families. I think it is critical for the coalition government to continue the support for our great service people and veterans. Nobody who understands the sacrifice of service and risks faced by our military personnel could possibly begrudge them the support that they require following their service. This government does not and will not forget our service men and women once they start receiving their pension payments.

While I am here, I want to talk about the 11th/28th Battalion. I look at our reservists, who do an amazing job, and I look at the 11th/28th in my part of the world. Just last Sunday, the Royal Western Australian Regiment battle group, the11th/28th, had an Army training session in Bunbury. They showed the community how the development of life skills, with leadership and teamwork, is part of that training. People got the opportunity to see the actual equipment that they use and to talk to real soldiers. They saw some of the training and were able to find out more. I am hoping that more young people in my part of the world choose to sign up to be reservists and perhaps consider entering the Defence Force.

The 11th/28th came out of what was the 2nd/28th, in which my mother's first husband served. Jack Leonard was his name. He saw service in the Middle East as well as in New Guinea. He was one of the oldest people in Western Australia to enlist in World War II. But, at that time, the war was well and truly on our doorstep and he could see what that meant for his family and his community. He was killed on the banks of the Busu River in New Guinea. It was a very rough crossing of the Busu River, and, during the night, the particular servicemen had to patrol the beach because the Japanese had a very strong foothold and were using their machine guns to keep our forces back. Jack and a 19-year-old serviceman were the forward scouts. They had to dig a hole on that beach that night, whilst the Japanese fired intermittently over their heads. It rained all night, and they had to try to keep their rifles and ammunition dry and their noses out of the water as the hole filled up. The Japanese stormed the beach the next day. Jack was found with a ring of six dead Japanese soldiers around him that he had taken on in hand-to-hand combat in that particular battle. He was killed by a head shot from a sniper.

My mother was at home on the farm in Brunswick, and it was a very hot day. I read her diary, and in it she talked about the fact that the young girl from the post office rode her pushbike out to tell my mum and give her this telegram—in those days you got a telegram. My mum, with my two older sisters—these two dear little girls—got in her car, caught the train with her mother and went to a place called Bridgetown, a couple of hours away, to let Jack's mother know in person so that she did not have to hear simply by a telegram. I often think of the courage that my mother showed. That was replicated frequently by families in our part of the world. Between a couple of small towns, we lost 16 members of the Defence Force in that time. It had a profound effect right across the whole community, and it still does to this day.

While I am here, I really want to acknowledge those Defence Force members who are currently operating around the world on behalf of our country. Whether it is in Afghanistan, whether it is in border protection with Operation Resolute—and we have about 800 members there—whether it is Operation Paladin or Operation Mazurka, whether it is in Egypt, Israel or South Sudan, or whether it is in the Middle East areas of operation right at this moment in Iraq, I think we all take a very direct interest in the operations that we commit our service men and women to, and those in this parliament in particular take it very seriously.

The other thing I would like to acknowledge is their extensive work in emergency services support, particularly by the reservists. We see this particularly during bushfires and floods. I understand that during the current earthquake damage in New Zealand the HMAS Darwin was deployed to assist. These are often the things that we do not actually see but that happen on a regular basis. Nothing gives our Australian communities greater confidence than to see the members of our Defence Force arrive in their communities. They are very well trained, they are very capable and their capacity with logistics in very limited circumstances is just extraordinary.

I am particularly proud to have Warrant Officer Sean Campbell with us for this week. He has a very interesting history and lists his career highlights as time spent serving at sea during numerous operational deployments, including the first operational deployments for Anzac and Arunta, and serving as a career manager before assuming the position of ship Warrant Officer. He is an officer member of Engineers Australia, has done a range of things during his time and has served Australia in its Defence Force particularly well. While he is with us today, I will say thank you so much for everything you have done and for what your family has contributed, because it is not just the individual Defence Force member, it is the family as well who contribute to what happens.

I want to speak as well about the government's initiative in the Veterans Employment Program. We know that each year around 5,000 Australian Defence Force members leave Defence, and they want to pursue careers. We are encouraging more small to medium enterprises to see the opportunity that exists in these very well trained and capable people who are all very highly qualified. The government is pursuing a range of initiatives in this space, just another example of how committed the government is in assisting veterans or people who have chosen to leave defence for whatever reason.

I spent time in Afghanistan in 2007 during a deployment in Tarin Kot and in Kandahar. We went out to a forward operating base, Camp Wali, in the Mirabad Valley. I will never forget the two young men who gave us a briefing out there. They were very young men but the most capable young people that I have come across. That capability was replicated in each one of these Defence Force programs that I have had the honour of being able to attend. Nothing quite gives you the knowledge and experience as being on the ground. The other thing it does do is give Defence Force members a direct opportunity to talk to us as members of parliament and it is amazing how much very genuine information we as members of parliament got out of that particular engagement. I will probably value forever that opportunity.

I am particularly pleased to be able to support this bill today. The coalition government has taken numerous measures to support our veterans and will do so ongoing. But given the commitment that they and their families give to this nation, it is really the least we can do. I am proud to support this and I would say that if my mother were alive she would be even prouder of the work of this government.

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