Louise Miller-Frost
Boothby · Australian Labor Party · Australia
“This has been a big week in parliament and a big week for delivery by the Albanese Labor government. The Solar Saver program started—three hours of power in the middle of the day. We expanded paid parental leave to a full six months. We opened the National Environmental Protection Agency and we opened a new veteran wellbeing agency.”
“More recently, we announced that we will strengthen consumer protections for those on Support at Home by empowering the Aged Care Quality and Safety Commission to be able to order refunds for overcharged services and to be able to report publicly on investigations and enforcement actions; by producing each quarter a national summary of Su…”
“The demographics are not in our favour. Next year, 90,000 additional Australians will turn 80; 15 years ago that number was 15,000. This has an impact on the service offerings we need to provide, specifically in aged care and health.”
“While we listen to those opposite try to throw blame around and cynically, desperately, try to claw back some votes, we should turn to an independent arbiter as to why the aged-care system is where it is right now.”
“The government's plan to expand and improve aged-care services in Australia will also mean an expansion of end-of-life pathway, providing dignified care to older Australians in their final months.”
“We are confronted with this reality and we are confronting the reality with a plan—a plan that will ensure that every older Australian can get affordable and timely access to the quality care they need and deserve, and a plan that will improve and expand the system to make it fit for purpose and sustainable well into the foreseeable futur…”
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“They teamed up with the Greens political party to axe climate laws that would have seen Australia reaping the economic and environmental benefits of having cut emissions via an efficient market driven mechanism. The one thing they actually did well for the environment was the 2020 Samuel review, commissioned by the now opposition leader during her tenure as environment minister. Then they promptly ignored it. Professor Samuel says now that he's bitterly disappointed with their current position. Join the queue, Professor Samuel. Disappointing Australia seems to be the forte of the Liberal and National parties—a natural talent, if you will.”
“On the Environment Protection Reform Bill 2025 and associated bills—one of the major reasons I chose, in 2021, to give up a really meaningful job with St Vincent de Paul in South Australia and spend 10 months campaigning unpaid was the appalling record of the previous Abbott-Turnbull-Morrison government on climate and the environment. This was a government who, in concert with the then SA Liberal environment minister, David Speirs, sabotaged the Murray-Darling Basin Plan to the detriment of South Australia's water security, our environment, our regional communities and our downstream agriculture. They cut funding to the environment by 40 per cent.”
“We'll continue to be responsive to older Australians who need more supports, whether that's specialist memory support services, mental health care or care for those living in regional areas. It's better care for more older Australians that puts them at the centre of their decision-making.”
“It puts them at the centre of their decision-making. It's a rights based framework. The act's statement of rights makes sure that older people can make decisions about their own lives and have their decisions not just accepted but respected. It's more support at home, including bigger budgets and separate streams for home modifications and assistive technology. And, of course, it's a transformational change in residential care, with places now being delivered to people not homes. This will allow older people and their families to get the care they want where they want it, closer to the people they love. Older Australians deserve the very best, and that requires transformational change.”
“In December 2023, only 54 per cent of aged-care homes had an overall star rating of four or five stars, which is good or excellent. Today, 79 per cent of homes do. Thanks to our reforms, older Australians are now receiving more care and better quality care under Labor. Now the New Aged Care Act is underway, we'll continue to make sure residential aged care is meeting the demand of an ageing Australian population and delivering truly equitable, sustainable and high-quality care. We know people want to stay at home, and the new act is making sure that they can do that with dignity, safety and quality support. But, when they need extra care, we'll make sure a bed is there for them. And it's important to note that the new act isn't just more of the status quo; it's better care for more older Australians.”
“We have already invested $17.7 billion to increase the wages of aged-care workers. Ultimately, the care you receive in a nursing home or aged-care facility is a direct product of the quality of the staffing. This government values the critical role workers play in this sector. We want aged care to be a career of choice, attracting and retaining quality workers who love providing care to other humans, who love aged care. Too often we heard that good carers and nurses were having to leave the sector because they couldn't afford their mortgage on aged-care wages or because they could get better pay somewhere else. Increases in aged-care workers' wages means they can pursue the career they love in the aged-care sector, providing quality care to residents. Most importantly, we've improved the standard of care.”
“We owe it to every older Australian to ensure that, when they need aged care, it will be there for them. Over the past three years, we have already introduced some very important improvements to the sector. We mandated 24/7 registered nursing in every nursing home, delivering more care minutes to residents. There is now a registered nurse on site in aged care more than 99 per cent of the time, delivering more direct care for over 250,000 older Australians. Our reforms are giving older Australians 7.1 million additional minutes of care every single day compared to under the last government. This is a great initiative to keep people healthy in their nursing home, their home, and also to avoid inappropriate transfers to hospital EDs for minor ailments and injuries.”
“We all heard the heartbreaking stories the royal commission was told of how older people—our parents, our grandparents, our neighbours and our friends—had been treated, and this government was the one to stand up and say that we can and must do better The New Aged Care Act, which came into force over the weekend, responds to 58 of the 148 recommendations. This means that this Albanese government will have now responded in part or in full to 103 of the royal commission's recommendations, and, of course, the work continues. These generational reforms to aged care are really important for every older Australian and their families, carers and providers. Australia has an ageing population, and we know that there will be increased demand on the aged-care system.”
“When the Albanese government was elected, one of our priorities was fixing the broken aged-care system. Nothing explained better how broken aged care was than the 2019 interim report from the royal commission into aged care, entitled simply Neglect . The royal commission final report was delivered two years later, in March 2021, and woefully little was done to address the catalogue of horror stories the royal commission had heard. By mid-2022, the previous coalition government had responded to fewer than 10 of the 148 recommendations.”
“I move: That this House: (1) notes: (a) that on 1 November, the Government's once-in-a-generation reforms to aged care began, giving more older Australians and their loved ones better access to a system that puts safe, high quality and dignified care at its core; and (b) the Aged Care Act 2024 and related reforms deliver a range of improvements to ensure older people and their needs are at the centre of the new aged care system including: (i) strengthened aged care quality standards; (ii) a statement of rights; (iii) a new model for supported decision-making; and (iv) introducing the Support at Home program to help older Australians remain in their homes for longer; and (2) acknowledges that the commencement of the Aged Care Act 2024 is the next step in the Government's aged care reforms, which has already included: (a) the introduction of star ratings; (b) more direct care for over 250,000 older people in aged care homes; (c) 24-hours, seven days a week nursing in aged care homes; (d) higher wages for aged care workers; (e) a new single assessment system; and (f) more transparency on provider finances and operations.”
“My question is to the Minister for Skills and Training. How is the Albanese Labor government breaking down barriers so Australians can get the skills they want in the jobs that we need? What has been the response?”
“Learning these skills now means we will be ready to lead and make good choices for Australia's future. Another step is creating more opportunities for young people to volunteer. Even though we are kids, we can already make a real difference—helping our neighbours, caring for the environment, or supporting charities. Volunteering teaches us teamwork, kindness, and responsibility. But often, we are told we are too young or not given the chance. The government should support programs that make it easier for children and teenagers to get involved, so we can start contributing today. We have a lot to contribute. By giving us stronger civics education and more chances to volunteer, the government would be building a generation ready to care, to serve, and shape a better tomorrow.”
“Raise Our Voice in Parliament is a national competition where students from high school and primary school put in speeches for their local member to read out in parliament. Boothby had a bumper crop this year, and the one that I have chosen to speak on is from Ella, who is 10 years old, from Mitcham Primary School, which was also one of the schools that Julia Gillard attended. Ella writes: Laws aren't just words on a page. They shape how we live every day—our rights, our responsibilities, and the opportunities we have. That's why we need to learn about civics and democracy from a young age. If schools taught us more about how Parliament works, how to vote, and how to speak up for what we believe in, we would grow into citizens who care about fairness and equality.”
“I've been unable to locate a copy of the book; however, I believe it included profiles of Bob Hawke, Paul Keating, John Button, Neal Blewett and Barry Jones, as well as a very unflattering description of the typical senator. She did, however, say that she changed some names to protect the guilty—the mind boggles. Liz is much missed by her partner, Peter; her sons, Stephen and Tom; her grandchildren, Maxwell, Florence and Oliver; her stepchildren, Matt, Jon and Ali and their families; as well as her sister, Verity, a former colleague of mine. Vale, Liz.”
“Her original career choice was ballet dancer, but, after leaving Adelaide High School, she received a University of Adelaide scholarship where she completed a BA and then a diploma in secondary teaching from Adelaide Teachers College. She taught languages at Elizabeth High School and was then selected for a pioneering 'English as a second language' intensive college at Gilles Street Primary School. Liz's flair for language and her interest in culture led her to live and travel around the world, teaching in Madrid and Oman, living in Argentina, Patagonia and travelling through Europe and the Middle East. She turned her creative flair and experience in parliament into a series of stories, originally published online as 'Snowflakes Hope' and then as 'The Glasshouse Effect'.”
“She spoke in her first speech of the importance of social housing, support for Vietnam veterans, single parents, people with disability and women escaping domestic violence. Interestingly, in April 1989, she issued a press release entitled 'Councils must plan for greenhouse effect,' talking about the impact on coastal communities of sea level rises, higher tides, storm damage, as well as changes in rainfall patterns, flooding and soil erosion—things we're starting to see now. Liz lost the 1990 election by 14 votes, which must have been heartbreaking. Liz was known to her family and friends as an incredibly intelligent and creative woman who had a talent for languages, a passion for dance, loved to travel and, beyond anything, loved to teach.”
“I rise to pay my respects to Elizabeth Robyn Truman, nee Harvey—known to her friends and family and colleagues as Liz—who died on 24 May 2025. Liz was the second member for Hawker, an electorate now largely absorbed by Boothby. She was the second Labor woman to be elected to the federal House of Representatives from South Australia as a member of the Hawke Labor government between 1987 and 1990. But her legacy within the party was much longer, most notably as a member of the Women's Policy Committee, campaigning for better representation for women. I'm sure she would have been ecstatic that the ALP now has a majority female caucus in federal parliament. We truly stand on the shoulders of legends like Liz. Liz was a compassionate and dedicated local member.”
“Decades later, they were retiring into poverty and turning up in the homelessness system. The introduction of paid parental leave in 2011 was too late for me, but it's been a game changer for many other women and families. The changes that this government has introduced and the payment of superannuation on paid parental leave is another step towards gender equality, supporting women and supporting families. Paid parental leave is not welfare, as the shadow finance minister would have it. Women should not have to pay a financial penalty for the rest of their lives, retire with less superannuation and retire into poverty for being the ones who get pregnant—for genetics—as the shadow industrial relations minister would have it. After all, we want Australian families to have children. A Labor government introduced paid parental leave.”
“Furthermore, this change, in addition to the reforms to the scheme, may also encourage more fathers and non-birthing parents to take paid parental leave, helping rebalance caring responsibilities and normalise shared care. Numerous groups have called for superannuation to be added to the government's Paid Parental Leave scheme, including the Women's Economic Equality Taskforce, the ACTU, the Business Council of Australia and the Diversity Council of Australia. The measure is also part of the government's gender equality strategy, Working for Women: A Strategy for Gender Equality. When I ran homelessness services in Adelaide, the women who came to us often had gaps in their income and gaps in their superannuation contributions from when they were having children. This left them financially disadvantaged, and this disadvantage was lifelong.”
“Adding superannuation to paid parental leave signals that time out of the workforce to care for a new child is a normal and valued part of life. It recognises the vital work of caregiving and reinforces paid parental leave as a fundamental workplace entitlement, like annual leave and sick leave. The 12 per cent contribution will be paid as a contribution to their nominated superannuation fund. Crucially, this change also represents a significant step towards gender equality. Women make up much of the paid parental leave recipients and, as such, due to breaks in the workforce, retire with far less superannuation than men.”
“To be specific, on more time, from 1 July, parents have been entitled to 24 weeks and, from 1 July next year, they will be entitled to 26 weeks; on more money, superannuation will be paid on paid parental leave for the first time ever, and the weekly payment rate will increase to almost $950 a week; on more flexibility, the time parents can take off together will increase from two to four weeks—and I really love this—enabling new families to spend time together as they get to know their precious new baby; and, on making more people eligible, the eligibility thresholds will increase with indexation. In total, parents will be almost $12,000 better off than when we came to government. Our changes to paid parental leave will benefit around 180,000 Australian families every year.”
“Labor created paid parental leave and Labor is expanding it. Investing in a more generous and flexible Paid Parental Leave scheme is a no-brainer. It's good for mums and dads, it's good for bubs and it's good for the economy. Our changes are the most significant expansion since Labor established paid parental leave under the Gillard government. Since July 2023, the Australian government has been delivering on the biggest expansion to paid parental leave since it was introduced in 2011, progressively increasing the scheme to 26 weeks by 1 July 2026. Thanks to Labor, parents will have more time, more money, more flexibility, and more people will be eligible.”
“I vaguely remember, a little over 26 years ago, when I discovered I was pregnant. It was a really joyous time. These were much-wanted babies, even though I thought I'd have one at a time, not three at once! But I also remember the stress involved in taking unpaid parental leave from my workplace. As a multiple pregnancy, I had to take leave at 18 weeks for health reasons. We went from being a two-income family to being a one-income family, and then, a couple of months later, we had the additional cost of three newborns to care for. I returned to work on a part-time basis when they were about four months old. While there were other reasons I wanted to keep my hand in in the workplace, the income was definitely a factor. Paid parental leave would have been very helpful and would have taken considerable stress off our new family.”
“On the one hand, we have a government that has ticked off over 100 large-scale renewable projects and now more than 80,000 cheaper home batteries for Australian households in just over three months. On the other hand, we have an opposition that, depending on the day, doesn't believe in climate change, does believe in climate change but not in meaningful action, believes in net zero but that we should be going slower, is waiting for the science, believes in non-existent small nuclear reactors or even mobile microreactors, or thinks dumping net zero is the electoral winner it should be adopting. Back to the meerkat, it's 'simples'. This government is working hard for the Australian people, the economy and the country. I'm not sure what those opposite are doing.”
“In the words of a well-known meerkat, 'Compare the market.' On the one hand, we have a government cutting HECS debts, rolling out fee-free TAFE, fully funding public schools for the first time ever, making housing more affordable for first home buyers and cutting the cost of medicines. On the opposition side, to paraphrase the opposition leader, they believe people don't value anything they haven't paid for. On the one hand, we have a government paying super on paid parental leave, supporting families and addressing an issue that sees older women retiring into poverty. On the other hand, we have a shadow industrial relations minister who washes his hands of the equity issue, saying it isn't his choice that women have children.”
“Sadly, this is just the latest in a series of issues Australians have had with Optus, including a major data breach in 2022, a national outage in 2023 that impacted internet, fixed line and mobile services, including EFTPOS, for more than 10 million Australian customers and businesses for more than 16 hours, and now this. These failures are of Optus and Optus alone. They must do better, and they should not be let off the hook for it. It really wasn't good enough, and Australian citizens paid the price for the failure. While the government awaits the findings of this investigation, I recognise the minister introduced the bill, which was passed earlier today.”
“When it fails, when you can't get help, it's hard to know what to do next. You're on your own in a situation that is your worst fear. Investigations are ongoing via the communications watchdog, the Australian Communications and Media Authority, and we keenly await their results. We understand anecdotally that it was only when the South Australian ambulance service contacted Optus to report a significant drop-off in triple 0 calls compared to their normal call load that Optus recognised there was a problem and acted to resolve the issue. There is no doubt the fault lies with Optus. It was their system that failed. Either there was either no backup or checking, or that system failed as well.”
“Under those opposite, when they were in government, there was no requirement for telcos to advise of breaches. Less than a month ago, approximately 600 emergency calls in South Australia, Western Australia and the Northern Territory using the Optus network failed to connect. We're aware of at least three deaths associated with the outage in South Australia and Western Australia. As we debated the bill earlier today, it is their deaths, possibly avoidable—we may never know—that should be foremost in our minds. But, on top of that, around 600 more people tried to call triple 0 and were not able to get through. And you can only imagine the sense of rising panic when people, in their worst time, try to call for assistance and don't get through. Most people don't call triple 0 lightly. It is the last resort.”
“With that level of profit, it's not too much to require them to abide by their legal requirements to provide a reliable essential service to their customers. It's quite simple. Australian citizens in distress have a reasonable expectation to have access to emergency help. They dial triple 0. That call is answered—police, fire or ambulance. There's no room for ambiguity, delay or failure. That is a social contract telecommunications companies providing these services on a profitable basis have with every customer. The existing regulations require telecommunications carriers and carriage service providers to ensure that emergency calls are successfully carried to the emergency call service at all times. Thanks to changes implemented under this government, telcos are legally required to inform the government of any failures.”
“In this country, we expect that, when Australians dial triple 0 in an emergency, they can rely on the call being answered. We are privileged. This is one of those expectations we don't even think about, until it doesn't happen. Australians are unfortunately very aware of the recent failures of the Optus services with regard to the triple 0 function, and it just isn't good enough. Reliable telecommunications are an important part of modern life, and, for the companies involved, a very profitable enterprise. In 2025, Optus's earnings before interest and tax were $446 million, an increase of 55 per cent on the previous year. Their earnings before interest tax depreciation and amortisation rose by 5.7 per cent in the same year to $2.2 billion.”
“Coming to this place in 2022, one of the things I've been most surprised about, perhaps naively, is the level to which people in this chamber see it as appropriate to play politics with the tragedies of others. I think it's something that makes the general public think less of us as politicians—that, even in the case of a tragedy, instead of focusing on addressing the issues and ensuring it doesn't happen again and instead of working together for the betterment of the community and the country, some in this chamber seek to make personal gain, to point score and to undermine. We've certainly seen that this week and now here again. The Optus triple 0 failure, for over 600 Australians, was a catastrophe. For at least three individuals, their families and their friends, it was literally life or death.”
“The treaty signed by the Prime Minister with our nearest neighbour, Papua New Guinea, demonstrates how important this region is to us, and our overseas development strategies and funding build on this focus. Proposed expenditure agreed to. Debate adjourned. Federation Chamber adjourned at 19:33”
“Our new $100 million Australia-Indonesia health partnership will be delivered over eight years, focused on human and animal health security, emergency response capacity and health system resilience. Importantly, there is also a $355 million climate action package over four years to help the Pacific and South-East Asian communities withstand climate related shocks, because we know that sea-level rises and stronger and more frequent storms are not a laughing matter. Australia is part of the Pacific and South-East Asian regions. They are our neighbours, and we are theirs. We want to be the preferred partner of choice. We want to play our part.”
“The government will also guarantee Australian bank presence in the Pacific and Timor-Leste for the next 10 years. These measures complement and reinforce Australia's major investments in critical infrastructure and digital transformation, driving trade and economic stability. A new three-year health resilience package will strengthen health systems and pandemic preparedness in the Pacific and South-East Asia. This investment will help nations to prevent, detect and respond to disease outbreaks while maintaining essential services for HIV, tuberculosis, maternal and child health, family planning and sexual and reproductive health. By addressing urgent needs now, this package strengthens regional preparedness, ensuring our partners are better equipped to manage future health challenges.”
“This budget makes deliberate and disciplined choices to direct more support where it has the greatest impact—economic resilience, health systems, climate action and humanitarian assistance. Australia's development program has been rebuilt and refocused to be more responsive, targeted and effective, ensuring it delivers results for our region and advances Australia's long-term interests. Australia's development investments are focused on delivering targeted, high-impact investments to support our region's economic and health resilience, climate action and humanitarian need. A new economic resilience package to be delivered over five years will support workforce skills, financial systems, job creation, small finance and economic reform in the Pacific and South-East Asia.”
“Development assistance is a key pillar of Australia's statecraft alongside diplomacy, trade and defence, working to advance our interests in a fairer, safer and more secure world. In 2025-26, Australia will deliver over $5 billion in official development assistance, an increase of $135.8 million on 2024-25. This reflects the government's commitment to a strategic, regionally focused and resilient development program to build prosperity in the region. In a time of global instability, Australia is repositioning its development program to where our national interests are most at stake. Three quarters of Australia's total ODA will directly benefit the Indo-Pacific, the highest share in four decades.”
“After the 2025 election, there was significant work to be done by our government to rebuild our relationships with our neighbours and to demonstrate again that we could be a trusted and valued partner, to demonstrate that we care about the things that they care about and that we take our shared future seriously. Australia's international development policy guides how Australia works with partners to advance a peaceful, stable and prosperous future for our region, ensuring the program is responsive to today's complex and interconnected challenges. As profound global challenges reshape our world, development needs across the Indo-Pacific and beyond are intensifying. Australia stands with its partners.”
“This government is putting significant effort into being the preferred partner in our region. When we came to government in 2022, we inherited a situation where the Pacific region had been largely ignored and where the concerns of the region and the existential threat of climate change were not only ignored but also mocked by the previous government. Yet our relationships with our neighbours in the Pacific and Asia are vital for our security and pose significant opportunities. Nature abhors a vacuum, and, when the previous government vacated the Pacific, it gave opportunities for other countries to fill that void.”
“The royal commission was an important, groundbreaking, sobering and necessary exercise, but it is the implementation of change that really matters. A year on from the final report, we're making good progress, and we are seeing more people choose to stay in the ADF longer as a result, but there is a lot more work to do. The royal commission's task for us as a government is no small feat, but implementing these reforms from the royal commission is vital to ensure that Defence personnel, veterans and families receive the care, services and supports they not only need but deserve. I'd like to finish by thanking any current or former serving members who might be listening for their service. (Time expired)”
“Further work is being done to ensure the military justice system balances the need for military discipline with the protection of individual rights and minimises adverse mental health impacts on those who engage with the system and to ensure that support mechanisms available to members involved in the military justice processes are effective at meeting their needs and preventing harm. This includes an independent inquiry into potential weaponisation of the military administrative system, examining whether the system has been or could be misused in ways that cause harm to ADF members. The establishment of the military justice assurance branch will strengthen coordination of governance, assurance and policy functions within the military justice system.”
“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 impacted by misconduct. 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. Defence has now completed the work to support the implementation of a presumption of discharge in circumstances where ADF members are convicted of sexual and related offences. This will be in place by the end of the year and supported by further legislative change. These reforms represent a critical shift. They send a clear message that sexual misconduct has no place in our Defence Force.”
“We will introduce a mandatory obligation to consider mental health issues during involuntary separation processes. Defence is working closely with the Department of Veterans' Affairs on establishing a comprehensive brain injury pathway to improve prevention, early detection and treatment for current and former ADF members with neurocognitive issues. The royal commission's final report also contains several significant recommendations related to sexual violence in the ADF, which are being actioned as a priority. There is now an updated central policy on sexual misconduct that provides clearer, more consistent guidance for commanders and managers.”
“We will introduce standalone legislation for the Defence and Veterans' Services Commission to ensure its independence and enhance its oversight of the implementation. The royal commission identified the need for a holistic approach to wellbeing when supporting Defence personnel, veterans and their families. Today we have released the Defence and Veteran Mental Health and Wellbeing Strategy. In addition to early intervention and comprehensive care, it prioritises wellbeing from the day a person signs up for our ADF until well after they have hung up their uniform for the last time. This ensures veterans who are transitioning to civilian life and their families don't fall through the gaps during a time that we know is of particular risk.”
“Changes to date include the establishment of the royal commission implementation taskforce within the Department of the Prime Minister and Cabinet to focus on the implementation and the establishment of a new statutory oversight body, the Defence and Veterans' Service Commission, with a dedicated and sustained focus on suicide prevention, which will be up and running at the end of September. This was considered by the royal commission to be the most significant action the government could take to address defence and veteran suicide. We're currently recruiting the inaugural defence and veterans services commissioner through a merit based recruitment process. This commissioner will have significant independent investigation powers into veteran supports and progress on the implementation of the royal commission's recommendations.”
“The final Royal Commission into Defence and Veteran Suicide report was released in September 2024—seven volumes, 122 recommendations, harrowing reading. It showed a way forward and once-in-a-generation opportunity for cultural change and reform. The government has agreed or agreed in principle to 104 recommendations, noting 17 for further work. As at the beginning of August, nine recommendations had been fully implemented, and a further 110 are under way.”
“We have acted, and we will continue to act on them all. We've legislated the Veterans' Entitlements, Treatment and Support (Simplification and Harmonisation) Act 2025 to simplify the veteran compensation system. These changes begin next year, and they will replace the current complex system that causes confusion and frustration, which the royal commission identified as a contributor to suicidality among our veteran community. This will mean all veteran claims will be assessed for compensation and rehabilitation under a single piece of legislation that will be simpler and faster to process. This is the most significant reform to how we support veterans in a century. As a result, we will be better able to provide the services and supports the veteran community needs when and where they need them.”
“For too long, this was not the reality. When the Royal Commission into Defence and Veteran Suicide was established in 2021, it heard from thousands of current and former serving defence members and families, particularly families of those who are no longer here to speak for themselves. I'd like to particularly acknowledge Julie-Ann Finney, the mother of the late David Finney, who was in the chamber earlier to hear the minister's statement, and thank her for her unrelenting advocacy. We heard of systems that were broken, of a culture that was toxic, and that not enough was being done to support our personnel during and after service. We've heard those calls, and we have acted. The royal commission released an interim report in 2022 containing recommendations they deemed the most urgent.”
“TPI claims submitted now are allocated to a staff member to assess within two weeks, and the majority of claims are finalised within a matter of a few months, depending on their complexity. This is as it should be. People are our most important defence capability. They need to be respected. We want Australians to choose to serve their country and be confident that they and their families will be well supported by their leaders, the broader defence organisation and their country. Every member of the ADF should be safe in the knowledge that, whatever may happen in service, they and their families will be looked after and acknowledged by a grateful nation. It is our nation's duty to empower and support the mental health and wellbeing of our defence and veteran community. There is an expectation that they will be looked after.”
“What we know about veterans is that they have a tendency to not put their TPI claims in until things are pretty dire. They don't put them in when they're just a bit wobbly. So these veterans were in dire circumstances when they finally put their TPI claims in, and then the department and we as a country left them sitting for 18 months or more with no response. Of course we have since discovered that there were close to 42,000 TPI claims sitting in the department that had not even been allocated to a staff member to look at them. I'm pleased to say that, during the last term of this government, addressing this backlog was a priority for the minister and for the government, and that backlog has now being addressed.”
“It's a fairly uncontroversial statement, I hope, to say that in Australia we respect and honour our serving defence personnel and the veterans for their service and sacrifice in our name and for our protection. It is no small thing to put your life on the line to serve your country. It is part of our Australian way of life that we know that we have the Australian Defence Force there to protect us. It was while I was campaigning in 2021 that I first started hearing from veterans and their families seeking assistance with their claims. Their stories were remarkably similar. They had submitted their total and permanent incapacity claims usually around 18 months or so earlier, and they'd heard nothing, and when they contacted the department, they couldn't get any information about where their claim was up to.”