John Faulkner (NSW, Australian Labor Party, Vice-President of the Executive Council) Share this | Hansard source

I thank Senator Ludlam for his question. I will try and deal with those areas of the question that I have some knowledge of. First, as Senator Ludlam mentioned, in this week’s budget there is a measure of some $24 million for veterans who suffered as a result of the British nuclear tests that occurred between 1952 and 1963 at Maralinga, Emu Field and the Montebello Islands. It is important to say that this represents the delivery of the commitment that the government made prior to the 2007 election to review the recommendations of the Clarke report which were made in 2003.

That recommendation of the Clarke report proposed that the ADF involvement in those tests should be declared non-warlike hazardous and, hence, veterans be compensated accordingly. As you point out, there has been a longstanding view that those recommendations should be acted upon. It was a public review and the outcome of the processes for the British nuclear test veterans was a decision to implement the Clarke recommendations. The government acted on and accepted the recommendations.

You made the point about lump sum compensation. It is true that some veterans are now arguing for a different form of compensation. My understanding, as a former Minister for Veterans’ Affairs, is that there is an issue in relation to the incapacity of lump sum compensation under the Veterans’ Entitlement Act, but I will check that for you. As you might be aware, the previous government undertook studies that provided white cards for healthcare support only for the treatment of cancer. There was no compensation and no wider health support beyond cancer. (Time expired)