Alex Gallacher (SA, Australian Labor Party) Share this | Hansard source

I rise to take note of Senator Ronaldson's answer to Senator Farrell. I think the point made by Senator Farrell is pertinent—it was not an answer; it was prevarication or an avoidance or something similar. But it clearly was not an answer. Senator Farrell clearly and succinctly put the case of advocating one thing and doing another. It is very clear that this minister is really straddling a barbed wire fence. To advocate that for 15 years the CPI was inadequate and then to bring it back is really stretching credibility to say the least. Refusing to answer direct questions about it is probably par for the course. It seems to be a continual theme of question time that we do not get an answer but instead get half a dozen points of order trying to direct the minister towards an answer. But it is always the same old tune: we are the government but it is not our fault. It is a big boys' fault. Someone else did it.

This is an extremely serious and pertinent issue. I know that Senator Ronaldson has received the letter that I am about to make some selective quotes from. I know that Senator Ronaldson has been in correspondence with this person. It is mainly Vietnam veterans who have taken the issue up with the minister, and there has been correspondence to and fro.

A lot of my working life I have associated with or been working with veterans. I have a brother who is a Vietnam veteran.

Let's just delve into it a little bit and give them a bit of comfort to know that people in this chamber do understand the situation they found themselves in. They were conscripted in a lot of cases. The gentleman says:

The army introduced us to alcohol and tobacco as a panacea while we were serving. Cigarettes were part of the supplementary rations. At the end of long and arduous operations infantry soldiers were given totally uncontrolled amounts of alcohol in the company boozers. If R&C was available, we were advised to avail ourselves, until stupid, with the bar girls in Vung Tau. As a result of Liberal/National coalition government policy, many of us did not fulfil our full potential in life.

That is the nub of this issue. These are people who were conscripts in a lot of cases. We do not see that in Afghanistan. There is no alcohol in Afghanistan. We have good policies. We have progressed in the last 35 to 40 years. There is no doubt about that. But these people, now at the end of their working lives—if they managed to have decent working lives—lost their career opportunities. To repeat, this gentleman says:

As a result of Liberal/National coalition government policy, many of us did not fulfil our full potential in life.

Now, we see a cruel decision against people who have done their absolute best for this country, who have sacrificed a lot of their youth, and who have worked probably in occupations that were more menial than they may have been able to achieve had they not been conscripted and sent to the Vietnam war.

They have written to the minister and asked him to reconsider. They probably had a fair idea that he might take some notice of that given that he has personally held forums on this and advocated for a different position to what is currently afoot. The fact that here in question time he is avoiding answering this question very clearly puts him in a situation that is untenable.

I will finish with the words of the constituent:

And so dear minister we must give you a fail. You have failed miserably to advocate for your constituents. You have too easily accepted the political dogma of your party. You are indeed totally bereft of the expectations of Australia for the care and respect of those who have served to make our Australia the envy of the free world.

So there is no lack of capacity to articulate this argument directly to the minister, and there is no lack of capacity to oppose these changes in this chamber, as so clearly and succinctly put by Senator Farrell.

The minister should be very well aware that we will not drop an issue such as this. We will advocate for these people who have served Australia in a tremendously great capacity.