Kimberley Kitching (Victoria, Australian Labor Party) Share this | Hansard source

I'm pleased to have the opportunity to speak on the Veterans' Affairs Legislation Amendment (Omnibus) Bill 2017. This bill was introduced in the House of Representatives in October by the Minister for Veterans' Affairs, Mr Dan Tehan. The shadow minister for Veterans' Affairs, Ms Amanda Rishworth, in her second reading speech, indicated the opposition's support for the bill. This bill was considered in detail by the Senate Standing Committee on Foreign Affairs, Defence and Trade, which reported its views in June. There has also been a process of consultation with representatives of the veteran community, and the bill has their support. The Senate Foreign Affairs, Defence and Trade Committee has also done substantial work this year in the area of Veterans' Affairs, and I think all members of that committee have worked in a consensus manner in order to improve the quality of veterans' lives.

I do want to echo Senator Farrell's comments about former Senator Lambie. A lot of the reform work in Veterans' Affairs has been pushed forward because of former Senator Lambie's drive and passion in this area and her willingness to share personal experiences. Not everyone would have been as brave as she has been on a number of occasions. Yesterday, when I was listening to the speeches paying tribute to former Senator Lambie, I was struck by the similarities between those speeches and the last part of the poem 'Ulysses' by Alfred Tennyson, which ends:

Tho' much is taken, much abides; and tho'

We are not now that strength which in old days

Moved earth and heaven, that which we are, we are;

One equal temper of heroic hearts,

Made weak by time and fate, but strong in will

To strive, to seek, to find, and not to yield.

And that does remind me of former Senator Lambie.

Ms Rishworth, the opposition spokesperson on veterans' affairs, acknowledged that the government has developed the bill in a bipartisan way. She acknowledged, in particular, that the government had agreed to her request to withdraw one of the proposed amendments which some veterans feared would reduce their right of appeal to the Veterans' Review Board against decisions made by the Department of Veterans' Affairs. That was done in order to ensure bipartisan support for the bill. It doesn't happen often in this parliament and I think it's worthy of note. In turn, Mr Tehan thanked Ms Rishworth for the opposition's cooperation in framing the bill. I note also that the member for Eden-Monaro, Dr Mike Kelly, formerly Colonel Mike Kelly—a very influential voice in this parliament on all matters to do with the Defence Force and veterans' affairs—has commended the minister for his zeal in acting in the interests of veterans. There are not many ministers in the Turnbull government who are currently being praised by the opposition! I fear I might get Mr Tehan into trouble if I add to that chorus of praise, so I will just say that I agree with both Mr Tehan and Ms Rishworth that, as far as possible, veterans' affairs legislation should be dealt with in a nonpartisan way, and that the process by which this bill has been developed is a good example of how that process can and should work more often. It reflects well on both the minister and the shadow minister, and on this parliament.

I want to take this opportunity of congratulating Ms Rishworth on her promotion to the shadow cabinet. She is a very capable and hardworking member, and she has a passionate commitment to the issues for which she is responsible, which are early childhood education and development, veterans' affairs and Defence personnel. I'm sure she will be a success in this role and as a minister after the next election.

Since this bill has bipartisan support, I don't intend discussing its provisions in any depth. It has eight sections, each of which amends various pieces of legislation, including the Veterans' Entitlements Act, the Military Rehabilitation and Compensation Act and the proposed Safety, Rehabilitation and Compensation (Defence-related Claims) Act. Most of the amendments are fairly minor and technical or serve to remove obsolete provisions. Both the minister and the shadow minister have described the proposed amendments in detail, and I don't think it would be a particularly good use of the Senate's time for me to repeat what they have said. Instead, I would like to discuss what I've learnt about our Defence Force personnel and the veterans' community since I became a senator a short year ago last week, and, particularly, since I've had the opportunity recently of travelling to the Middle East operations area as part of the Defence Force's parliamentary program.

There are currently about 350,000 Defence veterans in Australia, most of whom have been deployed overseas at some point in their service. They range from World War II veterans in their 90s to young, recently-discharged veterans of ADF deployments in Iraq, East Timor, the Solomons and Afghanistan. But the majority are over 60, including more than 60,000 Vietnam veterans who are now approaching 70. The number of veterans is not going to decrease in the foreseeable future. There are currently 58,000 full-time or part-time members of the ADF, nearly all of whom have been deployed or will be deployed overseas, who will, in due course, become veterans. About 5,200 personnel leave the ADF every year, and that number will increase. We have had commitments in the Middle East and the Gulf since 1990, and I expect they are going to continue for some time. Other trouble spots will inevitably arise—I think we've seen that recently in Marawi City—and we will be asking our ADF personnel to make further commitments. I can see a time where consideration may need to be given to increasing the size of our Defence Force as the world in general and our region in particular become more uncertain places. That, in turn, will increase the number of Defence veterans in the longer run.

As well as to veterans themselves, we have a commitment to veterans' families past and present. There are still, for example, a substantial number of World War II widows, now mostly over 80, who are receiving pensions and other forms of support. The spouses and children of more recent veterans also receive various forms of support. This makes it all the more important that we maintain our commitments to the wellbeing of our Defence personnel, our Defence veterans and our Defence families as strongly as they maintain their commitment to our security and that of our friends and allies.

This commitment, of course, does not come cheap, and nor should it. The overall Veterans' Affairs budget is over $11 billion a year. That includes pensions, income support, compensation, health care, rehabilitation, counselling services, transport, employment assistance, home care, housing, commemorations, education and grants funding. More than half of it, over $6 billion, will be spent on income support and compensation for veterans and their dependants. Around $5 billion is spent on health care. I might point out that only three per cent is spent on administering the department itself. Spending on veterans is rising both per capita and in absolute terms. This is because veterans are living longer and because medical technology is becoming more sophisticated and sometimes more expensive. We should also note that these benefits are uncapped. If the number of veterans increases more rapidly than expected because we have new defence commitments overseas, or if the medical needs of veterans become more expensive because of advances in medical technology, then the Veterans' Affairs budget will rise accordingly. That has been a long-term commitment of all Australian governments since World War I, and I think we would all agree in this chamber, in the other place and in the general Australian community that it should be maintained.

Since the Vietnam War and the traumatic effects that service in Vietnam had on many of those who served there, we have become much more aware of the mental health needs of veterans. Senator Fawcett outlined some of those considerations in his contribution. From virtually nothing in the 1960s, we now spend nearly $250 million a year on mental health services for ADF members, Defence veterans and their families. This includes services provided by doctors, psychologists, psychiatrists and social workers, as well as online information and support services. It includes the Veterans and Veterans Families Counselling Service, which provides free and confidential counselling and support to ADF members, veterans and families at 26 centres around Australia. VVCS serves more than 27,000 people every year.

Australia provides veterans with free mental health services. All veterans have access to full cover for five of the most common mental health conditions: post-traumatic stress, depression, anxiety, alcohol abuse and substance abuse. They don't have to prove that these conditions were caused by their service. As soon as they contact the department, these mental health needs are met without questions being asked. It's an expensive commitment but, I think, a necessary one. Despite all of this good work, there's obviously still a mental health challenge facing both veterans and the Department of Veterans' Affairs. I know that both the minister and the shadow minister are aware of this ongoing challenge, and I hope we will see bipartisan support for more measures to tackle it. Whether in opposition or in government, I will continue to draw attention to some of these issues.

This has been a fairly wide ranging debate. Since the bill itself has bipartisan support and is not controversial, I'd now like to range a little bit further afield. Since 2014, we have been marking a series of centenary events to commemorate Australia's involvement in the First World War. The most recent of these have been the events in Israel to mark the centenary of the Battle of Beersheba. These commemorative events were attended by the Prime Minister, the Leader of the Opposition and other parliamentary colleagues, including Mr Michael Danby and Mr Mark Dreyfus. They were welcomed in Beersheba by the Israeli Prime Minister, Mr Netanyahu. Many descendants of the Australians and New Zealanders who fought at Beersheba were also present.

The Battle of Beersheba on the last day of October in 1917 was one of the turning points of the First World War and, as it turned out, of 20th century history. The charge of the ANZAC Mounted Division at Beersheba was the decisive moment in the Allied victory over the Ottoman army in Palestine and Syria and is also regarded as the last great cavalry charge in military history. The division was made up of three brigades of Australian Light Horse and one brigade of New Zealand Mounted Rifles, supported by British Horse Artillery. It was commanded by General Sir Harry Chauvel, known as 'Light Horse Harry', one of the most highly regarded commanders in Australian military history.

It's not a coincidence that the Anzac victory at Beersheba was followed in a few days by the Balfour Declaration, in which the British government declared its support for 'the establishment in Palestine of a national home for the Jewish people'. The Battle of Beersheba made it obvious that the whole of Ottoman Syria, of which Palestine was then a part, would soon fall into Allied hands, and a decision had to be made about the conflicting claims to the territory.

The territory through which the Anzacs advanced after Beersheba, including Hebron, Bethlehem, Jericho and finally Jerusalem, was the heart of the historic homeland of the Jewish people, the ancient kingdom of Judea. Many of the ANZAC soldiers had been raised on the Scriptures and knew these places well. They knew that they were the first Christian army to enter the Holy Land since the Crusades, more than 800 years before. They felt they were making history, and they were right. By driving the Ottomans out of Palestine, the Anzacs made a great, if for the most part unintentional, contribution to the establishment of what eventually became the State of Israel. That's why Beersheba, in 1917 a dusty desert town with barely 1,000 inhabitants, is today an Israeli city of 200,000 people.

The battle at Beersheba established an enduring link between Australia and New Zealand on the one hand and the Jewish community of Palestine and later the state of Israel on the other. When the Ottoman Empire declared war on Britain, France and Russia in 1914, most of the Jewish population found themselves enemy aliens in the eyes of the Ottoman state. Some fled to British-controlled Egypt, but many more were deported to remote parts of the Ottoman Empire, deprived of their property, conscripted into the Ottoman army and subjected to various forms of oppression. So they naturally welcomed the ANZAC forces as their liberators, and many of them provided supplies and other services to the Allied armies. A network of Jewish agents also provided the Allies with valuable intelligence about the movements of the Ottoman armies. The best known of these were four siblings, Sarah, Rivka, Aaron and Alexander Aaronsohn, who ran the spy ring known as NILI, the largest Allied espionage network in the Middle East, with a network of about 40 spies.

The links between Australia and the Jews of Palestine who later became Israelis have remained strong. During World War II, Australian forces found themselves again in Palestine, by then under British control. In 1941, they used it as their base for the invasion of Syria and Lebanon, which were controlled by Vichy French forces allied with Nazi Germany. Many local Jews worked for the Australian forces in various capacities. One of those was the young Moshe Dayan, who acquired his famous eye patch as a result of an injury he sustained while serving as a guide for the Australian forces as they advanced northward into Lebanon.

So long as the ANZAC veterans of Beersheba remained alive, they made regular visits to Israel for various anniversary commemorations. Now of course they are all gone, but their descendants continue to honour the event. The centenary of the battle has served to refresh the links between Australia, New Zealand and Israel. At the ceremony on 31 October last, Mr Netanyahu paid a warm tribute to the role of the Anzacs in liberating the Jews of Palestine from Ottoman rule and paving the way for the establishment of the state of Israel.

Today the visitor to Beersheba sees many memorials to the battle and the role of the Anzacs in that campaign. There is a Commonwealth military cemetery where more than a thousand graves of Australian, New Zealand and British servicemen offer silent testimony to the sacrifices made by the Allied forces a century ago. There is of course also a Turkish memorial to the Ottoman soldiers who bravely defended their positions even as the Ottoman Empire was itself collapsing. There is also a striking statue of an Australian Light Horse trooper riding a horse, which is shown leaping over an obstacle. Not many visitors realise that the face of the trooper is that of the late Major General 'Digger' James, a Korea and Vietnam veteran who was later National President of the RSL and who took a close interest in the development of the ANZAC memorial site at Beersheba. The statue is part of a large Australian Soldier Park which was initiated and partly paid for by the Pratt Foundation and other Australian benefactors. It was opened in 2008 by the then Governor-General, retired Major General Michael Jeffery, and the then President of Israel, the late Shimon Peres. The park includes a number of memorials and recreational facilities for local children.

I might mention here that the Australian Soldier Park is one of the many excellent projects of the Pratt Foundation, which has donated more than $30 million to around 350 Israeli projects focusing on children with disabilities, yeshiva students, Jewish and Arab school students, the Batsheva Dance Company, the Jewish National Fund, Ben-Gurion University and adults with special needs. This is, of course, a foundation established by the late Richard Pratt, who was a great benefactor and philanthropist both here in Australia and in Israel.

The commemorative events at Beersheba are part of the four-year-long process of marking the centenary of World War I, which was initiated by the previous Labor government and has been continued by this current government. The highlight of this process was of course the centenary of the Gallipoli landings in April 2015. Thanks to this process, I think that most Australians now know that our involvement in World War I was much more extensive than the Gallipoli campaign. The process will conclude with the centenary of the armistice on 11 November next year.

Relative to our population, World War I was Australia's most costly war. A total of 420,000 Australians served in it, out of a population of barely four million, and 60,000 Australians lost their lives. Another 130,000 were wounded. On a per capita basis, this was one of the highest casualty rates among the Allied armies, which is a testimony to the courage of the Australian soldier. It also testifies to the fact that the Australians were frequently used as frontline assault forces as at Beersheba and also later in the great battles of 1918 on the western front when Australian forces, led by Sir John Monash, played a key role in breaking the German lines and bringing the war to an end. Sir John Monash was, in the view of most historians, the greatest military commander Australia has ever produced. He was also Jewish, and has a town, Kfar Monash, named after him in Israel. I'm not aware of any other town outside of Australia which is named after an Australian.

Although all the veterans of World War I are now gone, certainly they are not forgotten. They have left behind a military tradition which subsequent generations of Australian service men and women have upheld and further developed. But just as importantly—here I will come back to the subjects of the bill we are debating—it was they, the veterans of World War I, who established the long tradition of vigorous advocacy on behalf of veterans which has continued to today. The RSL was founded in 1916 to represent the servicemen, many of them wounded and sick, who were coming back to Australia from the Gallipoli campaign. In September 1917, the Repatriation Department was established, and in 1976 it became the Department of Veterans' Affairs, which was established to oversee the return and demobilisation of the Australian Imperial Force to Australia and for the provision of services to its veterans, particularly those who were disabled— (Time expired)