Milton Dick (Oxley, Australian Labor Party) Share this | Hansard source

I rise to support the Veterans' Affairs Legislation Amendment (Omnibus) Bill 2017. In doing so, I want to recognise the great work on both sides of the chamber. It is a true demonstration of the commitment that I think this whole House has to veterans in our community. Listening to my colleague and friend the member for Brand, I know her deep connection to the ADF through her family and also through her work as a local MP. I echo the sentiments she finished her comments with today about service and recognising the good work of the minister and the shadow minister.

I want to spend a little time highlighting the fact that the bill before the House is a clear demonstration that when good ideas are put forward and when simplification is delivered, both sides of the parliament can work together. In the last two weeks, I've probably spoken in the House of Representatives and Federation Chamber more than I have done since I was elected. I've spoken about a range of issues, on a range of portfolio allocations and on a number of local issues, but I have particularly taken time to read and understand this bill because I know it demonstrates to the wider Australian community that when both sides of politics work together and when both sides of the House of Representatives can join forces we can make a huge difference. Contrast that with some of the unfortunately divisive debates and divisions we've seen through the week. This bill before the House today gives a clear indication and a clear pathway forward for dealing with complicated issues surrounding veterans in our community.

I want to acknowledge the member for Herbert, who is in the House today, and her powerful speech on this bill yesterday and her strong advocacy as a representative of a large number of serving ADF and personnel in Townsville. Listening to the member for Herbert and talking to her about the advocacy she does when she's in the community in her electorate, I know how important it is that government gets it right.

Listening to the minister's second reading speech and also to the ministerial statement which was delivered to the House back in August, I know there are around 291,000 Australians that the Department of Veterans' Affairs supports. Just over half of these people are veterans or currently serving members of the ADF, around 48 per cent are women, around 82,000 are widows or widowers, and around 2½ thousand are children of veterans. Today, more than 203,000 of DVA's clients are 65 years old or older, while about 23,000 are under the age of 40. They represent every aspect of service, they represent every walk of life and they are across the whole of our nation, in every corner of our cities and towns.

In my electorate of Oxley, I'm very proud to be able to work alongside the RSL and veterans' organisations. I know every single member of the House works hard to advocate the interests of these people and, more importantly, the services that our serving and former serving men and women need in order to participate and to make sure their lives are honoured, and also to assist the transitions that many people go through as they leave the ADF. In the past 12 months, over 1,400 members of the ADF have separated from the forces for reasons not of their choosing. Ten years ago, just over 740 members separated involuntarily. How we help these men and women, how we provide for their transition and how we look at support for people when they are in the broader community is critical to the work that we do as members of parliament and also as community leaders.

We know that the Veterans' Review Board plays an important role in the merits review of decisions by the Department of Veterans' Affairs. As the shadow minister, the member for Kingston, indicated, Labor is supportive of the changes proposed in this bill which clarify, improve and streamline the operation of the law and processes within the department.

One of the first things I did when I was elected to this place was to invite the shadow minister to my electorate to meet with veterans and to meet with the local RSLs in my community. It was very clear from that initial meeting that government has a critical role to play in the ongoing support of veterans. I had been to a number of services over the years. I had met with a number of groups in my former role as a Brisbane city councillor, but it was being elected to this place and understanding and listening to the trauma and the difficulties that former members of the ADF and their families—particularly their families—suffer and go through.

As the son of a World War II veteran who served in the Navy as a signalman, I could always listen to my father talk about his experiences. That was a time when perhaps, following from when he left the Navy, often issues weren't discussed. Often there were times when men and women who served in the armed forces simply said: 'Well, that was wartime. We'll leave that behind. You don't need to talk about that. Get on with your life.'

Luckily, those times have changed. Today's amendments broadly set out a goal and an achievement to make sure that veterans who need support, who perhaps have served and are dealing with complicated issues, have accessibility improved. This bill today is not just about making it fairer; it's about making it more economical and informal and having a quick turnaround for a whole range of services. It promotes public trust and confidence in the decisions that we need to make and that the board needs to make. It's important that the process is as easy as possible for veterans to have a fair hearing on the merits of the decisions made.

There are a number of elements to the bill. It's divided into eight schedules. A number of speakers have gone through those schedules in detail, as did the minister and the shadow minister. I'm going to focus on one or two today. I know the veterans in my community and those who have come to my office seeking assistance have reflected a concern that the current system causes unworkable administrative issues and, sadly, unnecessary delays. We know from listening to the debate and following this closely, as I have, that the shadow minister has conveyed some of these concerns to the government.

After section 155(8), the bill inserts a proposed new subsection (8A), which gives the power to the principal member to dismiss an application for review if it is frivolous or vexatious, has no reasonable prospect of success or is otherwise an abuse of process. As the shadow minister said in her statement, we thank the government for removing this proposed subsection. As the member for Brand indicated, we did share the concerns conveyed by the veterans community and the RSL, who indicated a strong view on behalf of veterans that this proposed subsection should be removed, so we welcome this change. It reflects the unique nature of the Veterans' Review Board.

One of the other great opportunities I've had, apart from meeting and working closely with veterans in my community, was to be able to go onto the ground and visit our troops and our serving personnel when I visited the Middle East through the ADF Parliamentary Program. I was able and privileged to spend time with members of the Defence Force serving in the Middle East. We were able to visit the bases in the Middle East, to visit Afghanistan and to spend time in Kabul. This enabled me as a representative to see very clearly, firsthand, what our men and women go through on a daily basis. You can read about it, you can turn on the television, or you can log on and sometimes view what's happening, but, when you are able to visit a country at war and you see the dangers, the sacrifices and the sheer hard work that our men and women go through every single day, it puts a brand-new perspective on things. That experience left me with a greater respect for the Defence Force and the incredible sacrifices they make.

Currently, there are around 1,700 ADF personnel deployed to the Middle East region. Our Defence Force personnel remain active in advising, assisting and training Iraqi security forces and training and advising the Afghan National Defence and Security Forces in Afghanistan. I was privileged to be able to go and meet them and have a greater and deeper understanding of just what the ADF are doing to assist the men and women serving in the military there to lead, hopefully, to peace and recognition in that region. Our troops are not only doing an incredible job representing our country but, as I said, are working side by side with the local forces to train and equip the Afghan army. Above all, it was amazing. I was honoured to see the professionalism and commitment of our serving personnel on display 24/7.

I know that our troops are the best in the world and incredibly dedicated to serving our country. But I also know that in my own local community there are many ADF families that are separated from their loved ones. I cannot imagine the trauma, difficulties and fears those family members go through from day to day not knowing due to operational issues where their family members are and whether they are safe. The reputation of the ADF and their families and peacekeepers extends beyond our borders and to accompanying nations who also have personnel serving in the region.

From my own experience on the ground, from working with our veterans groups, I understand how critical and important it is to streamline medical and treatment processes for veterans. As I said in my earlier remarks, I have hosted round tables with the shadow minister. This week we saw the elevation to the shadow cabinet of the member for Kingston as our spokesperson for veterans' affairs. That's a very clear and powerful demonstration of strong leadership by an alternative government and by Bill Shorten, the Leader of the Opposition. We are sending a clear message, when it comes to veterans, that there is strong bipartisan support. The minister and the shadow minister worked closely in cooperation. I was incredibly pleased to see Labor taking a positive step to include the issues of veterans in the shadow cabinet. That sends a message to the wider community that we not only take their issues seriously but, if we are privileged to serve the nation as a future Shorten Labor government, we will have a veterans' affairs minister sitting at the table making the major decisions—as it should be.

I acknowledge all the work of members of parliament in this place. We are very privileged to have on my side of the chamber the member for Solomon, Luke Gosling OAM, and the member for Eden-Monaro, Mike Kelly OAM, who have demonstrated their commitment to public service in this place and also in the Australian Defence Force. I know from talking to the members for Solomon and Eden-Monaro the difficulties veterans go through when they leave the force, the difficulties for their families. We heard this week the ministerial statement on suicide within the ADF, and I was so pleased to see both sides of politics joining forces to acknowledge the rates of suicide are too high and, more importantly, that there is a plan going forward and more work to be done.

I thank the minister and the shadow minister for their efforts in working constructively together on this piece of legislation. I look forward to voting for this to see improvements for our ADF personnel. But the job is not finished. As a member of parliament, I will continue to advocate and represent to make sure the interests of our serving ADF men and women are looked after now and in the future.

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