David Feeney (Batman, Australian Labor Party, Shadow Minister for Justice) Share this | Hansard source

Very good. In the 2013-14 budget, over $12.5 billion in funding for the veteran community was assigned by the government including some $6.8 billion in pensions and income support and $5.6 billion in health services together with $85 million for commemorative activities, which everyone in this place agrees are of extraordinary and lasting importance. When you contemplate the fact that the Defence budget itself is something in the order of $25 billion per annum, you can see that $12.5 billion a year for veterans' affairs is, in fact, a very significant sum of money—one that is entirely appropriate, but it should be acknowledged that it is a significant undertaking by government.

Those moneys in the 2013-14 budget included an additional $26.4 million over the forward estimates to expand access to mental health services for current and former members of the ADF and their families. Expanded eligibility for treatment of certain mental health conditions on a non-liability basis was just one of the outstanding features of Labor's work in this area, and anyone familiar with the challenges in this space would know that PTSD and the scars that conflict can leave on our servicemen and women is going to be a growing challenge going forward. The dedicated staff from the Department of Veterans' Affairs On Base Advisory Service operating on more than 35 Defence bases around Australia provide advice on and support for injury, physical and mental health and compensation issues as part of the support for the wounded, injured and ill, and all have their place on Labor's list of accomplishments in this area.

In February 2013, an MOU was signed between the Department of Veterans' Affairs and the Department of Defence to facilitate even closer cooperation in the support for current and former military personnel veterans during the transition process. This was a very important accomplishment, because there we are able to see that as servicemen and women transition from Defence to DVA—from being soldiers to being former soldiers, sailors, airmen and women—it can often be a very difficult time, and there was very strong support from the two departments to make that as seamless as could be achieved.

The Veterans Pharmaceutical Reimbursement Scheme to help veterans with out-of-pocket expenses for medications for their war-caused conditions cost some $30 million over four years, with initial payments made in the first quarter of 2013. That was another Labor accomplishment. Veterans, partners, war widows and widowers were given a further boost to their payments in March of 2013 for the Clean Energy Supplement, a regular payment made under the Household Assistance Package.

Labor initiated and completed the review into our military compensation and rehabilitation arrangements under the Military Rehabilitation and Compensation Act 2004. In doing that work, the former Labor government accepted 96 of the 108 recommendations. It implemented a number of changes to ensure compensation and health care for our veterans and their families continued to meet their needs—some $17.4 million over four years—and it brought legislation into this place to put into effect recommendations arising from that review on 27 June 2013.

As everyone will remember, more than $140 million in funding for the Anzac Centenary was assigned by the former government including $27 million for an upgrade of First World War galleries, $100,000 per federal electorate for the Anzac Centenary Local Grants Program, $5 million for the Australian Memorial in Wellington, New Zealand, and $10 million for the Australian Remembrance Trail in France and Belgium. All of the arrangements surrounding the ballot arrangements for Anzac Day 2015 at Gallipoli were also put in place by Labor. This is all part of the very significant record.

But it continues, because from September 2011 there was some $500 per fortnight for the former Prisoners of War Recognition Supplement—$20 million over four years. There was a coordinated veterans' care program—$152.7 million over four years—led by a general practitioner with a nurse coordinator that provides ongoing planned and coordinated primary and community care to eligible Gold Card holders who have chronic conditions and complex care needs and who are at risk of unplanned hospitalisation.

In August 2011 the former Labor government instituted the 'graves of our bravest' program, which provided for the ongoing maintenance of the graves of recipients of the Victoria Cross, the Cross of Valour and the George Cross—all of these sacred places needing maintenance and the respect that they have earned. The graves of these recipients are now maintained by the Office of Australian War Graves, a team that does an extraordinarily good task right around the world.

From 1 July 2011 the Commonwealth Superannuation Corporation, the CSC, became responsible for the investment and management of public sector and military superannuation schemes. The establishment of the CSC as the consolidated trustee was a Labor initiative that helped secure increased superannuation benefits for quite literally thousands of military and civilian superannuants.

In the 2011-12 budget additional funding of some $8 million per annum was provided to the Australian War Memorial—again, an extraordinary institution—and that injection of funds supported its enormous workload. In that same budget some $3.3 million was provided towards a world-first education centre in Washington DC that honours our Vietnam veterans.

In the 2010-11 budget the government provided $55 million over five years as part of its response to the recommendations of the parliamentary inquiry into the concerns of F-111 deseal-reseal maintenance workers. The parliamentary inquiry report was tabled on 25 June 2009. Also, in the 2010-11 budget the government provided $24.2 million over five years to provide the Australian Defence Force British nuclear test participants with access to compensation under the Veterans' Entitlements Act 1986—justice long awaited for those servicemen. This measure recognised the unique nature of these tests and the fact that service in these operations involved hazards well beyond those of normal peacetime duties. Submariners who participated in certain special operations have also had the qualifying nature of that service recognised.

On 20 September 2009, as part of the government's commitment to secure and sustainable pensions, a one-off increase of $65 per fortnight was made to the single rate of service pension, available from the age of 60 to veterans with warlike or qualifying service and age pension. Smaller increases were given to couples, including the Partner Service Pension.

Since 2009, following the Dunt review, Defence and the DVA have undertaken significant reform in the mental health and rehabilitation programs available to Defence. The DVA provided some $9.5 million and Defence $83 million towards that program.

Another Labor accomplishment is that since 2008 the Department of Veterans' Affairs disability compensation pensions have been indexed in the same way as income support payments, with that legislation passing in September 2007. And in September 2009 an additional indexation factor—the Pensioner and Beneficiary Living Cost Index, which I spoke of earlier, the PBLCI—was introduced for income support payments and for age and service pensions. In addition, the male total average weekly earnings benchmark was increased from 25 to 27.7 per cent at the single rate, and disability pensions and income support pensions continue to be indexed in the same way.

In 2008 Labor established an independent Defence Honours and Awards Appeals Tribunal which, having previously had the privilege of being the Parliamentary Secretary for Defence, I was responsible for. That body has since reviewed the Long Tan gallantry citations, the eligibility criteria for the Australian Defence Medal and recognition of service with issues as diverse as the 4th Battalion of the Royal Australian Regiment in Malaya between 1966 and 1967. It is doing incredibly important work, making sure that the integrity of our Defence honours and awards system is maintained and also making sure that a whole plethora of issues of extraordinary importance to a whole range of different service men and women are given a proper hearing and a proper decision-making process.

Labor can also take credit for the review of unimplemented recommendations of the Clarke Review for memorials of national significance criteria being established, for the conduct of a Vietnam veterans' family study, and for the automatic grant of war widows' pension for widows of temporary, totally incapacitated and intermediate rate pensioners. Labor established a special claims unit within the Department of Veterans' Affairs to improve transaction times, significantly reducing processing times for compensation claims. It was Labor that established a Prime Ministerial Advisory Council on Ex-Service Matters and Labor that provided a funding boost for ex-service organisations, the declaration of Battle for Australia Day on the first Wednesday in September, Bombing of Darwin Day on 19 February and Merchant Navy Day—one of particular significance for my family—on 3 September. And it was Labor that implemented the post-Armistice Korean Service Review recommendations, including the issue of the Australian General Service Medal Korea as well as the Returned from Active Service Badge for eligible ex-service men and women.

So while those opposite will continually seek to denigrate Labor's record, Labor's accomplishments, Labor's passion and Labor's commitment to our veterans and to our ex-service men and women, let that denigration be known for the furphy that it is. And let it be understood that Labor can point to an extraordinary record of accomplishment in this very important area of public policy, because those opposite—try as they might—do not have the single claim to be the custodians and defenders of our former service men and women, our veterans community. As we have seen over 11 long years, the Howard government did precisely nothing. And under the zealotry of people like Senator Minchin they made sure that doing nothing in this space was a matter of high principle for them. Labor has in fact delivered a whole series of reforms in this important space—reforms that mean investment, mean stronger commemoration of our military history, and mean that there are practical solutions delivering real benefits for our veterans every single day of the year.

Turning to this bill that is before us, it is obviously one that Labor will be supporting through this place. It is a bill that the coalition went to the election with, and we accept the fact that it is building on Labor's record in the DFRB and DFRDB reforms page and in the commitments that Labor also took to the last election. But let me finish this debate by raising some questions that we would like to see the coalition answer in terms of making sure that this bill and the spendings it will realise are in fact sustainable. As we are voting for it in good faith, it is our absolute resolve that it should be sustainable.

This bill seeks to triple-index the closed military pension schemes, the DFRB and the DFRDB. These indexes are CPI, the PBLCI that I have spoken of, and the MTAWE. The indexing will be attached to these pensions from the age of 55.

Recently, in response to a question asked in Senate estimates, the Abbott government disclosed that the financial impact of this bill would be a cash balance of $58.1 million, a fiscal balance of around $780 million over the 2013-14 budget forward estimates period, and it would reduce the government's net worth by around $4.4 billion dollars over the same period. These are very significant costs. While in government we estimated the cost of the coalition's scheme to be some $175 million over four years, and we estimated it would increase the Commonwealth's unfunded liability by $6.2 billion. So this is a very expensive measure. We would seek to get some comfort from those opposite when they speak to this issue, as to how on earth that is going to be maintained and sustained. I look forward to listening to their contribution.

It is also worth noting that the coalition, in supporting this bill, has encountered some criticism from various interest groups. This highlights that there are other pensioner groups and other superannuation groups who feel they are missing out. One of the most significant of these is another category of military pensions, the Military Superannuation Benefits Scheme. This is the scheme that remains open and includes most serving members of the ADF today. The DFRB and the DFRDB were closed in 1972 and 1991 respectively, so the great bulk of ADF members serving today are not covered by those schemes. For those on MSBS pensions, today's measure will provide them with no benefit, and it will be a continuing public policy sore for the coalition.

The other disaffected group are retired civilian public servants, who, through the Superannuated Commonwealth Officers' Association, the SCOA, have been lobbying, together with ex-service organisations, for the same indexing arrangements, but, of course, they have been totally unsuccessful. It will be very interesting to watch over the coming days and weeks how the coalition deals with the question of why the DFRB and the DFRDB increases will not be extended to superannuated Commonwealth officers. With those concluding remarks, I look forward to hearing those opposite deal with some of those issues. I am very pleased to say that we will be supporting this bill in the House.

See this speech in context