Madeleine King (Brand, Australian Labor Party) Share this | Hansard source

I speak today in support of the Safety, Rehabilitation and Compensation Legislation Amendment (Defence Force) Bill 2016. This bill, as many have explained before, will create the Safety, Rehabilitation and Compensation (Defence-related Claims) Act, the DRCA; and the Safety, Rehabilitation and Compensation Act, the SRCA. The DRCA will apply only to Defence Force members and their families, while the SRCA will continue to apply to other Commonwealth employees.

Let's look for a moment at what this change means for those who are affected by it. In effect, this bill will place all current veterans legislation with the Minister for Veterans' Affairs, and this makes sense. Defence Force members' needs are already covered by two acts, the Veterans' Entitlements Act and the Military Rehabilitation and Compensation Act. However, Defence Force members, for the purposes of compensation, rehabilitation and treatment, are broadly dealt with by the Safety, Rehabilitation and Compensation Act when their matter occurred prior to 1 July 2004. This SRCA provides compensation, rehab. and treatment to a range of Commonwealth employees.

Our Defence Force members serve the country in roles that are unlike any others held by most, if not all, Commonwealth employees. As was stated in the Tanzer review of 1999, when referring to the requirements placed on Defence Force personnel in order for them to do their job:

Such conditions are generally specific to military life and would not normally apply to the majority of those in civilian employment.

Therefore, a targeted approach to those members' needs, especially in the sensitive area of compensation, rehabilitation and treatment, is a positive move. The DRCA will continue to confer the same rights on Defence Force members that are currently provided for under the SRCA, but the DRCA will be enacted as a military-specific statute and will not be subject to any further amendments to the SRCA should they occur. The DRCA will apply in relation to an injury, disease, death, loss or damage that related to certain employment in the Defence Force that occurred before the commencement of the Military Rehabilitation and Compensation Act on 1 July 2004. The DRCA's enactment will allow the Military Rehabilitation and Compensation Commission to bring the DRCA into closer alignment with the Military Rehabilitation and Compensation Act as part of future amendments.

This bill seeks to remove all Defence Force specific legislation and all reference to Defence Force members from the SRCA in creating this DRCA. Defence-related claims will no longer be dealt with under the Comcare scheme, as is the case at the moment. By removing all Defence Force specific legislation from the Safety, Rehabilitation and Compensation Act, the Minister for Veterans' Affairs will be provided with responsibility for all three compensation acts covering veterans and Defence Force members.

As I've previously mentioned in this chamber—quite often—my electorate is home to the largest naval base in the Royal Australian Navy. HMAS Stirling, located on Garden Island, just off the coast of Rockingham in the electorate of Brand, is the workplace of more than 2,300 service personnel and hundreds of civilians working in Defence roles. The base plays a critical role in the defence of Australia, hosting multiple Defence assets, including Anzac class frigates, the Collins class submarines and more than 70 other naval units. But HMAS Stirling is more than a military asset; it's an integral part of the community and, in turn, serving Defence members, former members and their families are all supported by this community.

Throughout our community, across the suburbs of Rockingham and Kwinana, there are RSL clubs, social clubs, sports clubs and family assistance groups that all support and engage current and former Defence members and their families. On this past Anzac Day, I had the absolute pleasure in attending the unveiling of a 5.5 metre replica two-man Chariot human torpedo submarine on the very day when we commemorate all those service women and men who have served our country. This World War II replica submarine has been built to scale, weighing almost a tonne. This labour of love took Laurie Drage and his son Cory six months to construct from recycled scrap metal in Laurie's Kalgoorlie workshop. Laurie Drage, a Vietnam veteran from Port Kennedy in my electorate, donated the submarine replica to the Totally and Partially Disabled Veterans of WA club in Baldivis in gratitude for the support the organisation gives to veterans and to him personally. The club's enthusiasm and commitment to this project, its defence comrades and the wider community is to be commended. The support and help the club gives to veterans is to be commended as well.

Defence families make their homes in our local suburbs. Their children attend our local schools. These schools hold Anzac Day ceremonies, with defence members attending and participating on the day. I was lucky enough to attend services at Baldivis Primary School, Gilmore College and Comet Bay High School this year, and other services in and around Kwinana and Rockingham. The pride in the community for our past and present servicewomen and servicemen, our neighbours and colleagues, is always palpable. Schools across the electorate support defence children through the Defence School Transition Aide Program, helping kids settle into school and supporting them when their parents are deployed all around this country. Defence partners and spouses also work in local businesses, as do members when they leave the service.

Recently, I attended HMAS Stirling to welcome home the HMAS Arunta as she and her crew returned from a successful nine-month deployment to the Middle East to undertake Operation Manitou—part of Australia's contribution to the NATO-led Operation Resolute Support to ensure Afghanistan grows and prospers peacefully into the future. HMAS Arunta was very successful. The crew can be very proud of their work intercepting illicit drugs, trade and goods that would have been otherwise destined to provide financial support for terrorist and extremist activities in the Middle East. On a wet weather Sunday in July, the crew was welcomed by their friends and family and the top brass of the Royal Australian Navy. Days such as these are filled with joy and joyous tears as people are reunited with their loved ones after a lengthy separation. On these days, we see the best of our armed services and their friends and families.

On these happy days of reunification when the Navy band plays, the service wraps everything up in a sense of belonging to a shared mission in the service of the nation. But this can't happen every day. Sometimes, the return to home life is difficult. It is even more so when a sailor, a soldier, an airwoman or an airman returns home after their last day in the Australian Defence Force. The days, months and years after discharge from the services can be very challenging. Building a new life and career post-service can be difficult for many veterans and ex-service personnel. We haven't been the best at helping those who have served with a difficult transition into civilian life. We need to do better at this. We must do more to help veterans, ex-service personnel and their families. We need to ensure the families of veterans are supported as they support the veteran in their lives.

Most veterans and service members transition very successfully into civilian life and continue to serve the community and contribute for many years in many capacities. Their defence experience is invaluable and it is valued by the community. But this is not necessarily the case for all. For those veterans who do find the transition to civilian life difficult, we need to ensure that these veterans receive the support they need. There are many elements to transitioning to civilian life—secure housing, social support, health and fulfilling employment. These pieces all need to fit together to solve the puzzle of a successful transition to civilian life. We must do our utmost to help our veterans with these challenges.

We have to acknowledge also that many veterans have taken their own lives upon leaving the service of this nation. As a community, we need to ensure that this stops and that we do all that we can to ensure that veterans don't reach that most grim of conclusion that ending it is the only way through. We know veterans are at a higher risk of suicide compared to the Australian community, especially among men aged 18 to 24. The recently tabled Senate inquiry into suicide by veterans and ex-service personnel received an overwhelming amount of evidence. The inquiry helped to shine a light on the issues of suicide and mental illness in this very important community. I thank the senators involved for all their work looking into this most grave of issues, but I particularly would like to thank all the veterans, former service personnel, veterans organisations and families who contributed to this important inquiry.

Labor has recognised the gaps in support available to veterans and former service personnel and is committed to developing a family engagement and support strategy for defence personnel and veterans to provide greater support to our military families.

Most people across the electorate of Brand, across Rockingham and Kwinana, know someone who has served in the Australian Defence Force or who is a veteran of armed conflict, and many of them themselves are current ADF personnel, former service personnel or veterans who have witnessed things most of us never will and never want to. To these people in my electorate: I want to let you know that I am committed to helping the Labor Defence team develop and implement the family engagement and support strategy for defence personnel so that, when you need support and help, it will be there for you and for your family. It is the least we can do for those who serve this nation.

As I was reflecting earlier, we have many community organisations which support serving and former defence personnel in this electorate. As the community does, it makes sense that we, in this place, best support defence personnel in this case by delivering legislation that best protects and assists their needs.

I will look again briefly at what this bill aims to achieve. The proposed DRCA will provide a complete separation of the legislative framework for Defence-related claims from the nonmilitary Comcare scheme. It will provide the Minister for Veterans' Affairs with the responsibility for all three of the separate compensation acts, which cover veterans and Defence Force members. It means the DRCA will apply in instances where injury, disease, death, loss or damage that relates to certain employment positions in the ADF occurred before the commencement of the MRCA.

The new bill will more closely align with the MRCA by providing defence personnel with access to military-specific compensation and rehab. schemes as part of the Military Rehabilitation and Compensation Commission and place all current veterans acts with the minister. Whilst this is welcome news to my constituents in Brand who are affected by these changes, there are a number of concerns with the bill in relation to the areas of consultation that need to be considered. These concerns were voiced at the recent Senate Standing Committee on Foreign Affairs, Defence and Trade inquiry into suicides by vets and ex-service personnel as I mentioned earlier. Concerns were raised with the committee about the Department of Veterans Affairs consultation and engagement practices regarding proposed legislative changes.

The committee's final report looked at the difficulty ex-service organisations faced in assessing legislative proposals—a problem due at least in part to limited resources. This lack of resources hindered ex-service organisations in both assessing legislative proposals and providing their informed feedback on these proposals. The committee considered these issues as impacting on the relationship between the organisations and the DVA, and considered the department as best placed to improve these relationships. Unfortunately, it's led to a perception of an adversarial relationship between DVA and some veteran stakeholder groups. Therefore it was recommended that the Department of Veterans' Affairs review its consultation and engagement practices so it can receive informed critical feedback on proposed legislative amendments, rapidly respond to concerns raised in the veteran community and increase the understanding of proposed legislative changes in that community.

I believe this is the best way in which to deal with these matters of sensitivity and importance, which can impact on so many people's lives, especially in my electorate of Brand. It is pleasing, especially when dealing with legislation that can affect the Defence community, to see that some concerns that key elements of the SRCA that were absent from the DRCA have been resolved. The committee raised concerns, and the department responded, resolving the majority of issues.

Because there are no practical changes to the DSCA, no veteran or ADF member will be financially worse off due to the creation of this bill. The reason for creating it is to enact a bill, which is Defence-specific, which applies only to Defence members and their dependents. As I have said before, it makes sense to place veterans legislation with the Minister for Veterans' Affairs. It makes sense that the minister is responsible for matters concerning veterans, especially in the sensitive area of compensation, rehabilitation and treatment.

Military service places unique demands on members' lives—demands which can be difficult for civilians to understand or appreciate. These demands were highlighted in the report into suicide and self-harm prevention services available to current and former serving ADF members and their families. It also highlighted the fact that veterans and ex-service personnel are more likely to be affected by suicide than other members of the community, especially younger men.

This review encouraged continuous improvement to services and systems that support current and former service men and women. There are lessons that can be applied outside of this particular review's parameters. I am confident that this bill, in creating the SRCA and the DRCA, is going towards improving the processes and systems that apply to Defence Force members. I would like again to mention the work of the Senate Standing Committees on Foreign Affairs, Defence and Trade and their very important inquiry into suicide in the military and among veterans and ex-service personnel. I also acknowledge the Department of Veterans' Affairs for their very hard work on this legislation. I note the cooperation involved by all to achieve the best outcome for those affected by this bill.

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