Matt Keogh (Burt, Australian Labor Party, Minister for Veterans’ Affairs) Share this | Hansard source

The rate of veteran suicide in Australia is a national tragedy. That is why Labor called for the establishment of the Royal Commission into Defence and Veteran Suicide when in opposition. As a government, we are taking the royal commission extremely seriously. It's why we responded quickly to the interim report and why we have now taken action on each of the recommendations in it. It's why it's so important that we complete this royal commission in a timely fashion, because we know there is no time to waste. We must take action to save lives, and a vital part of that is the timely conclusion of this royal commission so that we can receive its recommendations and get on with the job.

We know that people don't want to see this royal commission drag on. Veterans, veterans' families, Defence personnel and ex-service organisations all want to see timely action. We completely understand that as a government. It's also why we responded so quickly to the royal commission's interim report last year. The Royal Commission into Defence and Veteran Suicide has advised that they need to get through around 600 private hearings in the time frame left before the inquiry comes to a close in mid 2024.

Considering the need for timely conclusion, and in recognition of the significant workload of the commission, we're providing the royal commission with new powers through this bill—the Royal Commissions Amendment (Private Sessions) Bill 2023. This bill will provide more flexibility to the royal commission as well as to other royal commissions to make sure resources can be best utilised to conduct inquiries in an effective and efficient way. Vitally, for the Royal Commission into Defence and Veteran Suicide, the mechanism introduced through this bill will continue to see that individuals who wish to participate in private sessions are treated with the greatest of respect and care and that this process is undertaken in a trauma informed way.

This bill, in the case of the defence and veteran suicide royal commission, will enable the chair to authorise in writing a suitably qualified and experienced member of staff of the royal commission with an appropriate level of seniority to undertake private sessions in the capacity of an assistant commissioner. This is not an authorisation that would be dished out by a single royal commissioner or royal commission chair in any circumstances but would only be exercised when circumstances existed that justified the need, such as, in this case, the need to get through about 600 private hearings in a limited amount of time.

Importantly, this bill includes the appropriate protections for an assistant commissioner holding a private session. Private sessions have been a really important feature of this royal commission. They've enabled individuals to share their often highly sensitive experiences in a more intimate, less formal setting than a traditional hearing. The intention is that these experiences are undertaken in a trauma informed way. They seek to be less confronting than being placed on a witness stand visible to the public.

The information shared in such a forum, whilst not considered formal evidence, and with no oath-taking requirement, affords the participants the protections that they would receive as an official witness. This is important in the Royal Commission into Defence and Veteran Suicide, due to its sensitive nature, whether that is on personal or security grounds. This facilitates a forum for the individual to share their experiences. It promotes their right to privacy. It makes sure they have freedom of expression. It ensures that the royal commission can benefit from their experiences and views. Such testimony is important in understanding the lived experiences of defence personnel, veterans and families, and will itself very much inform the work and the recommendations of the royal commission.

The bill will assist the royal commission to complete this substantial workload ahead of its final reporting date of 17 June 2024. We've already made significant inroads when it comes to taking action on the royal commission's interim report, taking action on all 13 recommendations. A year on from the release of that interim report, the Albanese government has released an update on the progress that we have made on those recommendations, and I'm proud that a number of those recommendations have now been actioned and completed.

We know that the time it takes for claims to be processed has a negative impact on health and wellbeing for veterans. This is largely due to the complex legislative framework under which they are processed. It's why we are working with haste to ensure that the system is fit for purpose, easy to understand and gets through the backlog, because we agree with the royal commission that this action is needed urgently.

The royal commission is accepting submissions until 13 October this year. I encourage anyone who hasn't already, and has experiences to share with the royal commission that can assist, to please do so. The royal commission wants to hear from you. We support the work of this royal commission. The bill before us today will enable that important work to continue effectively and for the royal commission to still report in June next year. I commend the bill.

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