Keith Wolahan (Menzies, Liberal Party) Share this | Hansard source

N () (): I rise to continue my remarks on the Defence, Veterans' and Families' Acute Support Package Bill 2022. When I last spoke, I thanked the minister for the goodwill and spirit that this bill encompasses. The part that I wanted to focus on was that the support is no longer contingent on warlike service. Yesterday I was proud to stand in this chamber and say that we honour the 102,000 names on our War Memorial, but there are many names on other memorials of those that died in training and in service, and we honour them too. I looked up at the brother of Greg Sher and said: whenever I can, I'll say his name. That was Barry Sher's plea to me.

I'd like to pick out two peacetime incidents that happened that we should never forget. The first happened in Melbourne, at the Rip. Melbourne has a large bay, and at the end of the bay is this peaceful but potentially dangerous stretch of waterway. On 17 February 1960, 74 commandos engaged in an exercise to move from one side, in Queenscliff, to do a raid at the other, near Portsea. They never made it. Although they took off in good weather, the weather turned, and 74 commandos fought in vain to save the lives of three who were lost. Their names are Warrant Officer Class II George Drakopoulos, Private Roger Wood and Private Eddie Meyer. At the annual memorial, I see all of their friends, and I see from the friends who were there on that day that, even though we're a long time away from 1960, you never get over that.

This bill properly looks after every veteran who put on a uniform and took a risk. On other times and other occasions, I think we should honour peacetime names. At some other time, I would like to read out the 18 soldiers and crew that died in the 1996 Black Hawk training exercise, but I will save that for another time. I thank the House.

See this speech in context