Carol Berry (Whitlam, Australian Labor Party) Share this | Hansard source

I have a strong personal interest in this issue. My maternal grandfather fought in the Borneo campaign towards the end of World War II, an operation conducted to liberate British North Borneo, as it was then called, from occupation by Japanese forces. My great uncle also served in World War II, including as part of the Kokoda campaign fought in Papua New Guinea. For both these men, particularly my grandfather, the scars left by those experiences affected them and their broader families for the rest of their lives. Tragically, the pain and anguish my relatives suffered, mostly in silence, after they returned home was similar to the internal battles faced by so many other veterans. In more recent times we have recognised that we have a duty to support the mental health and wellbeing of our defence and veteran community.

The Royal Commission into Defence and Veteran Suicide was established in 2021, and I note the substantial contribution of Senator Lambie, who joined with us to secure its establishment. The royal commission heard from thousands of current and former defence members and families—importantly, this included the families of those who were not there to speak for themselves. These stories were frequently heartbreaking. It was clear that systems were broken and not enough was being done to support our personnel both during and after their service.

The royal commission released an interim report in August 2022, and this contained a list of urgent recommendations. I am pleased to say that the Labor government acted on all of them. We have cleared the unallocated compensation claims backlog, which included 41,000 cases that had been waiting to be actioned. We have ensured that new claims are now being looked at by someone in the Department of Veterans' Affairs within 14 days of being submitted. We are making good progress speeding up the system, with new liability claims under the Military Rehabilitation and Compensation Act 2004 being processed in around 100 days. We engaged with a range of stakeholders, and after hundreds of discussions we were able to pass the Veterans' Entitlements, Treatment and Support (Simplification and Harmonisation) Act 2024 in February this year. This legislation simplifies the complex veteran composition system that too often causes confusion and frustration, and which was identified by royal commission as a contributor to suicidality amongst veterans. The new legislation means that all veterans' claims will be assessed for compensation and rehabilitation under a single piece of legislation that will be simpler to use and faster to process.

In September last year the royal commission released its final report with 122 recommendations. Within three months, the Albanese Labor government agreed or agreed in principle to 104 of those recommendations, and we are committed to conducting further work on the other recommendations. In December 2024 we established the royal commission implementation taskforce to oversee the development of comprehensive and considered advice on implementing the response to the royal commission. Significantly, this taskforce sits within the Department of the Prime Minister and Cabinet.

The royal commission recommended that the most significant action the government could take to address defence and veteran suicide was to establish a new statutory oversight body with a dedicated and sustained focus on suicide prevention. We have taken action to establish this as a priority. The new Defence and Veterans' Services Commission will be up and running by the end of this month. It will provide independent oversight and evidence based advice to drive system reform to improve suicide prevention and wellbeing outcomes for the defence and veteran community. In addition, this government has announced $44.5 million in funding over four years for the Defence and Veterans' Services Commission, and we are currently recruiting the inaugural Defence and Veterans' Services Commissioner. The commissioner will have significant independent investigative powers into veterans' supports and progress on implementation of the royal commission's recommendations. This appointment will drive systemic change and champion the wellbeing of serving and ex-serving ADF members across government and the ex-service community. We will also introduce standalone legislation for the Defence and Veterans' Services Commission to ensure its independence and enhance oversight of its implementation.

The royal commission identified a need for a holistic approach to wellbeing when supporting defence personnel, veterans and families. Today we have released the Defence and Veteran Mental Health and Wellbeing Strategy. The Department of Veterans' Affairs and the Department of Defence have been working together since 2023 to develop the strategy, together with the mental health and wellbeing action plan and the suicide prevention action plan. The strategy complements the Defence and Veteran Family Wellbeing Strategy 2025-2030, and the Veteran Transition Strategy. These are all key foundational documents for the new wellbeing agency. The strategy unites Defence and the Department of Veterans' Affairs to foster a culture of wellbeing and mental health care.

I note that we've provided $4.5 million to the Department of Veterans' Affairs to commence a codesign and consultation process with the veteran community on both the wellbeing agency and an ex-service organisation peak body. A national roadshow has been held throughout this year, and more than 600 people have been consulted. We are now working to finalise the wellbeing agency operating model so that it can be established by the middle of next year.

Another important initiative being pursued by the Department of Defence includes a range of preventive measures to minimise exposure to activities with a link to brain injury. Defence is working closely with the Department of Veterans' Affairs to establish a brain injury program to improve prevention, early detection and treatment pathways for current and former ADF members with neurocognitive issues.

The royal commission highlighted disturbing failures in the treatment of women across defence and veterans systems. These failures need to be acknowledged with honesty and addressed with urgency. The Albanese government is committed to addressing these failures through the development of the Women Veterans Strategy, a comprehensive plan to ensure both current and former serving personnel are valued and properly supported at every stage of their service and transition to civilian life. This strategy will, either directly or indirectly, implement 52 royal commission recommendations and is being shaped by the voices of the women who have served. It will address core areas such as health care, mental health, financial security, housing and family support, all through a gender informed lens.

I note that recommendation 15 has been implemented through an updated central policy on sexual misconduct, which now provides clearer and more consistent guidance for commanders and managers. It outlines when to engage the Joint Military Police unit and how to determine whether conduct may constitute a criminal offence and introduces structured return to work protocols for those who may be impacted by misconduct. Defence is also reviewing and updating key frameworks, including the Defence complaints and resolutions manual, to ensure definitions of sexual offences and reporting pathways are clearly articulated and in line with equivalent civilian provisions. Importantly, ADF prosecution councils are now required to invite impact statements to be considered by a service tribunal during sentencing, aligning military practice with longstanding procedures in civilian courts.

In November last year, the Chief of the Defence Force issued a directive that commanders and managers must now consider suspension from duty and involuntary separation of members alleged to have engaged in serious misconduct, including sexual offences, sexual harassment, intimate image abuse and stalking. Overall, these reforms send a clear message that sexual misconduct has no place in our Defence Force. There must be a culture that does not tolerate abuse, that acts decisively when harm occurs and that places the dignity and safety of all members at the centre of our actions.

One year after the final report was released, we've made good progress, but we are fully aware there is more important work to do. We want to deliver the most comprehensive reforms ever undertaken in Australia to reform the systems, processes and culture to support defence personnel and veterans and their families. The Albanese Labor government will continue to act on the royal commission's recommendations as quickly as we can.

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