Barnaby Joyce (New England, National Party, Shadow Minister for Veterans' Affairs) Share this | Hansard source

on indulgence—I'd like to concur with the remarks of the Minister for Veterans' Affairs and note the coalition's willingness to expedite the process as quickly as we can. I don't think there's any person in this House who wants to see one other person harm themselves, and it is incumbent upon all of us to do something. We all wear the responsibility of where this has come to, and we all wear the responsibility of finding, as best we can, some solution. But not for one second am I holding up a panacea and saying that what we will do will fix everything, but we will do our utmost.

In conclusion, it's an incredible thing that some people sign on the dotted line knowing full well that they may get the order that brings an end to their life, and a culture that asks that is a culture that is sometimes a hard thing to rewind from. We understand that, and we acknowledge that the esprit de corps that is part of the Defence Force also relates to the huge loss that so many families have when they ask us for so much. We know that, deep in their hearts, what they really want is their mother, their father, their brother, their sister, their son or their daughter back, and that is one thing our chamber tragically is not able to provide to them.

See this speech in context