Andrew Wallace (Fisher, Liberal Party) Share this | Hansard source

Serving your country in the Australian Defence Force is a great honour, but that honour comes at a cost. I think the retirement of the previous member for Eden-Monaro, Mike Kelly, has demonstrated that, and I want to join with speakers previously who have indicated their respect for Mike. The Australian Army values are courage, initiative, respect and teamwork. If you could sum up each of those four values into one word, it would be integrity. Mike Kelly, the former member for Eden-Monaro, demonstrates and encapsulates what it means to have integrity. There are probably not too many people that you could say that about in this place. Mike Kelly is a very good man, and I just want to acknowledge the service he has given to his country not just as an MP but to his country in uniform in places like East Timor, Somalia, Bosnia Herzegovina and Iraq. Mike finished his military career as a colonel and the director of the Australian army legal service. I wish him well and I wish his family well in his health recovery.

Thankfully only a small minority of those who serve in the ADF finish their service with injuries or worse. But all who have served in the ADF no doubt have made many sacrifices. During their service ADF personnel spend a great deal of time away from their homes and their families. Even when they're at home during their service they give up many choices and autonomy over where they live and their day-to-day lifestyles. Overseas the necessary privations can be much more severe.

The men and women of the ADF expect these sacrifices while they serve and they willingly accept them, but, unfortunately, in many cases veterans discover that even after leaving the Defence Force they still face challenges because of it. Transitioning ADF personnel have suffered disadvantages compared to their civilian counterparts in finding work, getting recognition for their prior learning, finding accommodation, gathering the references and documentation they need and reintegrating into their communities. The coalition government has worked hard since 2013 to improve these processes. We've instituted a policy of no discharge without documentation, for example. This ensures ADF members are prepared for civilian life and future employment with all the documents they need, including medical and training records, to make transition as seamless as possible.

To help further we've established individual professional career coaching for ADF members prior to, and up to 12 months following, separation from the ADF. We've delivered the Prime Minister's Veterans Employment Program to help veterans to identify employers who are likely to support them and give those employers awards for their commitment.

We've allocated more than $266 million to improving the systems of the Department of Veterans' Affairs and making it easier for veterans to get access to the services and information that they need. This is not to mention the additional funding the government has allocated to support veterans' higher education, mental health services and better access to rehabilitation.

Buying a house can be an important part of making this transition as successful as possible. Owning a home helps to embed all of us in a new community, as well as giving us greater financial security and a sense of belonging. This can be especially important for ADF veterans. That's why the Defence Home Ownership Assistance Scheme assists current and former ADF members and their families by providing subsidised home loans through three nominated providers. However, it can take some time for newly transitioned former ADF members to find a place in civilian life for themselves and their families. It's hard to lay down roots until you've made major life decisions, like what career to pursue, which community to live in and what your future will in fact hold. Those decisions take time and access to information, especially for individuals whose exit from the ADF was not voluntary. They are decisions which cannot always be made whilst still serving.

As it stands veterans are eligible to make an application for a subsidised loan under this scheme for two years after they have left the ADF. But I'm sure all of us here would appreciate how quickly two years can pass. Anyone who has transitioned from a normal life to a life in this place will know how quickly the first two years passes and how long it can take to make those adjustments. The experience for veterans is even more marked as they attempt to systematically rebuild each aspect of their lives in a totally new setting. I know that the minister has spoken to many veterans about this issue and I know that he has been listening. Two years is simply not enough. We want veterans to be able to consider their options carefully. We want them to make the best possible choices for themselves and their families in every aspect of their lives before making that commitment. We don't want them to feel rushed into making the biggest financial decision that they're likely to ever make simply because the deadline for a government scheme is arising. This scheme is supposed to help veterans transition, not force them into making hasty decisions.

Schedule 1 of this bill extends the time after a member separates from the ADF during which they can apply for a subsidy certificate for their housing loan to five years. Initially this change will only benefit around 100 ADF members, but in the future some 5,500 transitioning veterans will have access every year. This will do a lot to make sure that veterans have the time they need to reintegrate into the housing market and find their place in the civilian world.

However, this bill goes further. It will also make a major contribution to ensuring that our veterans are not disadvantaged in the further critical area of superannuation. As it stands, when a member leaves the ADF they lose the right to continue to contribute to the ADF superannuation scheme. Throughout most of civilian life, including now in the public service superannuation accumulation plan, when an employee moves jobs we allow them to continue to contribute to the same super account with their new employer. In fact, we actively encourage them to do so to avoid worsening the $20 billion problem of lost and unclaimed super. Not being able to keep contributing to their super account risks ADF veterans facing higher fees, unnecessary duplication of insurances and lower incomes in retirement. Schedule 2 of this bill will avoid these poor outcomes for veterans by guaranteeing that ADF members can choose to remain contributory members of the ADF superannuation scheme when they leave the ADF.

Under this bill, from 1 May 2020 if you've served at least 12 months in the ADF you'll be able to keep contributing to the ADF superannuation scheme for life. We know that ADF members appreciate their super fund. Since the government introduced it in 2016 97 per cent of new members have chosen it and the scheme is growing every year. The ADF superannuation scheme provides unique benefits to servicemen and women above and beyond strong returns, including automatic insurance benefits, despite their hazardous occupation. I have no doubt that, once this bill is passed, a great many will take up this new option. These improvements to legislation are only the latest in a comprehensive package of measures—led by the current Minister for Veterans' Affairs and his predecessors; the Minister for Education; and the Deputy Prime Minister—to support veterans as they transition from the ADF into civilian life. We've seen these impacts nationally, in programs as diverse as free and immediate mental health treatment for all veterans; the National Commissioner for Defence and Veteran Suicide Prevention; individual professional career coaching; and new veterans wellbeing centres being built all over this country.

Locally, in my electorate of Fisher we've also seen the impact of the government's focus on improving outcomes for former service men and women in the now completed renovations to the Glasshouse Country RSL. As part of the 2019-20 federal budget, the Morrison government delivered a grant of some $258,000 to this critical sub-branch in my community. The Glasshouse Country RSL is the only sub-branch in the hinterland of my electorate, helping cater to a region with one of the largest populations of veterans in Australia. This government's funding allowed President Brian Machin, Deputy President Dave Siebrecht and their fellow members to undertake a transformative program of improvements. This included upgrades and new equipment for the bar and dining areas, increased space for military heritage displays, safety and security improvements throughout, and a redesigned office area. I was proud to have the opportunity to visit the site earlier this year, before the current crisis, to officially open the completed new facilities. The welfare benefits that these improvements will bring when the sub-branch reopens will obviously result in a greater quality of life for those members of the Glasshouse Country RSL. The familiar RSL building was already home to community groups like Probus and the Orchid Society, but, with these new first-class facilities, I know there will be many more locals knocking on their front door. I've been advocating strongly in Canberra for the funding of the RSL since the beginning of last year, and I'm grateful to the community for helping me by showing their support at every stage.

Whether it be in relation to mental and physical health, pensions, employment, recognition or remembrance, this government is fully committed to improving the lives of former ADF service men and women in this country. You can see that commitment in the record $11 billion we are investing in their care each and every year. This bill will make a further modest but very important contribution in the vital areas of accommodation and superannuation. I commend the bill to the House.

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