Claire Clutterham
Sturt · Australian Labor Party · Australia
“Some in this House have asked: how many cups of coffee can you buy with the Albanese Labor government's 1 July 2026 tax cuts? But I ask: how many cups of coffee can you buy with the money that you save from seeing a GP for free?”
“The eSafety Commissioner has identified serious compliance concerns and is actively investigating five major platforms due to their noncompliance.”
“But we need action from the entire parliament, in this place and in the other place, for that to happen. I call on all members and senators to walk together to take this action. I do that because this issue is also deeply personal for me. In my first speech to this parliament, I spoke about my own experience of bullying at school.”
“One of the early scenes in the 2010 movie The Social Network depicted young women at Harvard recoiling in disgust as they discover a website created by one of their peers that allowed male students to compare them based on their so-called 'hotness'. The website was a precursor to what would become Facebook.”
“Social media is a part of the world they have always known, yet they were remarkably forthright about its downsides. They spoke about algorithms that keep them scrolling, the pressure to seek approval through likes and followers, and the impact social media was having on their confidence, self-esteem and mental health.”
“That is why keeping children safe online should be a bipartisan issue. When the Albanese Labor government introduced the social media minimum age of 16 last year, we did so because we listened to parents, educators, experts and young people.”
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“The bill promotes the required independence, in that the commissioner will be appointed by the Governor-General following a public and competitive process. The bill also operates to prescribe powers of the commissioner, which are entirely appropriate powers and drafted through the lens of accountability. Firstly, in addition to the reporting already outlined, the bill empowers the commissioner to further report to the Prime Minister and minister where they consider that inadequate and inappropriate action has been taken by a Commonwealth entity in respect of recommendations contained in a report to the commissioner.”
“In order to ensure that it can report on the government's progress in implementing the response to the recommendations of the royal commission, on the third and sixth anniversaries of the government's response, being by 2 December 2027 and 2030, the commission needs to enjoy independence functions and have the powers necessary to meet these objectives and to maintain the trust of the Defence and veteran community. It needs to have the structures, independence and mechanisms to call for accountability in this respect and to call for more progress, for improvements, for changes. This bill delivers on the full implementation of this by enshrining the legislative establishment of the Defence and Veterans' Service Commissioner and Defence and Veterans' Service Commission into its own independent standalone legislation, as always intended.”
“So, since September 2025, the Defence and Veterans' Service Commission, legislated in February 2025, has been up and running. The Defence and Veterans' Services Commission is dedicated to providing independent oversight and evidence based advice to the government in order to drive the necessary system reform that we need to improve suicide prevention and wellbeing outcomes for current and ex-serving members. It has, at its heart, the goal of facilitating long-term accountability for the systemic reforms envisaged by the royal commission so that the lives of those who protect Australia now and for future generations are themselves protected today. Quite rightly, the commission has a dedicated and sustained focus on suicide prevention.”
“The Government will appoint an interim head of the oversight body to work across government and provide advice on the establishment of the permanent oversight entity, including legislation required, to enable its establishment by September 2025. The government delivered on that commitment, and it is important that it delivered on that commitment. The position of this government and of all Australians and all participants in this House is that the death by suicide of any Australian, including our veterans and current serving Australian Defence Force members, is a tragedy. It is unacceptable that Australia has lost more serving and former serving personnel to suicide over the last 20 years than through operations in Afghanistan and Iraq over the same period. It is unacceptable.”
“It reads: The Australian Government should establish a new statutory entity with the purpose of providing independent oversight and evidence-based advice in order to drive system reform to improve suicide prevention and wellbeing outcomes for serving and ex-serving Australian Defence Force members. This was said to be the most critical recommendation of the 122 because of the foundation it would provide to the other recommendations and the fact that it would be the most significant action the Australian government could take to address Defence and veteran suicide. In response to this recommendation, the government said: The Government agrees to establish a new statutory entity to oversee system reform across the whole Defence ecosystem as a priority.”
“Given this level of significance, the royal commission, the report and the recommendations—including their progress—should continue to be spoken about in this House with an ingrained degree of regularity. The importance of keeping this conversation going, of keeping reforms moving, of continuing to discuss and mitigate risk factors and of providing support to serving personnel and veterans cannot be understated, and it should never stop. The final recommendation, recommendation 122, was that the government establish a new statutory entity to oversee systemic reform on a whole-of-defence basis. The precise wording of recommendation 122 was that the government establish a new statutory entity to oversee system reform across the whole Defence ecosystem.”
“I rise to speak in support of the Defence and Veterans' Service Commissioner Bill 2025. In this House, we have spoken, on many occasions, about the Royal Commission into Defence and Veteran Suicide, which delivered a report in September 2024. This report was the culmination of three years of inquiry into suicide in Australia's defence and veteran population, and it noted that even one suicide is a crisis. The final report, which was an analysis of complex cultural and systemic issues relevant to suicide and suicidality amongst serving and ex-serving Australian Defence Force members, contained 122 recommendations to government, designed to provide the foundation for meaningful, practical and sustainable reform.”
“And ask everyday, reasonable Australians whether they value having highly skilled workers to build the houses we urgently need, to educate young children, to care for elderly family members, to assist in the transition to renewable energy and to contribute to the largest defence project in Australian history with transformative, generational opportunity for industrial and strategic advancement. Australians value it. Free TAFE is valued by all who touch it and all who directly or indirectly benefit from it.”
“Ask the 725,000 students, 62 per cent of whom are women, who have enrolled in free TAFE places, including the 24,000 in my electorate of Sturt, whether they value the opportunity to achieve a meaningful qualification that will lead to a well-paid, secure job in a critical industry. They value it. Ask the students who typically face barriers to education and training—such as women, economically disadvantaged students and Aboriginal and Torres Strait Islander persons—whether they value the opportunity to participate in the education system and then participate in the paid workforce, providing a better life for their families and doing something for themselves. They value it.”
“In my home state of South Australia, TAFE SA is leading the Centre of Excellence in Early Childhood Education and Care and the National Security Centre of Excellence in a joint initiative between the Australian government and the South Australian government. A key feature of these TAFE centres of excellence is the partnerships they are fostering with universities, industry, unions, jobs and skills councils, and other TAFEs across Australia. Partnerships with industry are particularly important because it is these partnerships that lead to work-ready graduates who are not just highly skilled in their field but are ready to hit the ground running from day one. Labor is the party of skills, and Labor is also the party of free TAFE. It is not true that, if you receive something for free, you don't value it.”
“The data tells us that the percentage of occupations suffering from a skills shortage has dropped to 29 per cent in 2025 from 36 per cent in 2023. Skills shortages in these critical industries are at their lowest level in three years, and these industries are critical. They are housing, care, support services, clean energy and digital capability. The National Skills Agreement is not just a bucket of funding; it is a complete reset of how the future workforce is trained for these critical industries. Since 1 January 2024, $135 million in policy funding has been paid to the states and territories, and $225 million has been announced through the National Skills Agreement to be matched by the states and territories to establish 14 TAFE centres of excellence, which are central to delivering a refreshed and strengthened VET sector.”
“South Australia may be the beating heart of AUKUS, but AUKUS is a national endeavour requiring effort and dedication across the country, and programs like AUKUS, so critical for our national security and our prosperity, require a skilled workforce. That is why the Albanese Labor government is bringing states and territories together to improve vocational education and training and build the skilled workforce our country needs for the future. Skills shortages will leave our country behind, and that is why this future focused government has prosecuted the National Skills Agreement, which was designed to directly target industries with the most critical skill shortages. This five-year agreement releasing up to $34 billion to strengthen the VET system is a landmark investment in productivity and future economic security.”
“Australia is building and growing, South Australia is building and growing, and my electorate of Sturt is also building and growing. Whether it be the Osborne shipyard, home to the future build of the SSN-AUKUS class submarines, the landmark housing developments in the northern and inner-city parts of Adelaide, the new Women's and Children's Hospital or the Torrens to Darlington Road upgrade, South Australia is building. The hospital, houses, roads and submarines do not build themselves. Skilled workers build them, and skilled workers educate the children of those workers who are doing the building. Skilled workers care for the ageing parents of those workers who are doing the building.”
“This is an historical five-year grant agreement that will facilitate the continued growth of Australia's GP and rural generalist workforce in the years to come. The record 2,100 doctors who will commence GP training in 2026 includes rural generalist trainees who are vital to serving the needs of rural and remote communities across our vast landscape. The healthcare services provided by rural generalists are vital. A rural generalist is the first port of call for an incredible range of issues—the link between home and other required healthcare services. Regional communities rely on their rural generalist doctors both for their health and as leaders in their communities, where they are part of the foundation that makes a sustainable, thriving community.”
“Strengthening Medicare was a key focus of the Albanese Labor government's election platform. We committed to making significant investments to make it easier to see a GP, to reduce the costs of medicines, to promote and give women's health the urgency and attention it deserves, to open more urgent care clinics and Medicare mental health centres, to train more doctors and more nurses and to take steps to encourage those doctors and nurses from the bush to stay in their communities. As a former volunteer director on the board of the Royal Flying Doctor Service, I'm particularly proud of the announcement on 6 February this year that the Albanese government will invest more than $1 billion to train more doctors in more communities.”
“Finding savings and embarking on restructures of government programs to deliver efficiency gains will always be preferrable to reducing services, increasing taxes or cutting important areas like Defence spending, something that forms a critical part of government spending and which we simply cannot afford to reduce. There are some signs of progress, but last week's RBA decision shows that more progress is required. Therefore, progress in this respect and progress in respect of the economy will be the focus of the government's agenda in this year's budget and beyond.”
“Enabling access to the paid labour market for parents so that they can contribute to the economy is a key and deliberate aspect of this initiative. These economic initiatives are being prosecuted in parallel with structural budget repair. MYEFO illustrated that the Albanese Labor government has found more than $114 billion in savings and that the budget is in fact $233 billion better off than when Labor came to government. There is less debt in every year of the forward estimates because of the policy decisions that have improved the bottom line.”
“Free TAFE, grants for apprentices and 20 per cent off all forms of student debt—university, TAFE, VET and apprenticeships—is not just education reform; it is economic reform for the individual beneficiary and their household. Cheaper child care provides more children access to early education, but it's not just about access to early education; it is an issue of economic management. Pay rises for early childhood educators are about recruitment and retention into this vital industry, because we know that we need more highly skilled early childhood educators to educate the children of other skilled professionals if that is what they choose for their children. Education is the driver of this initiative, but it is not the only consideration.”
“A new thousand-dollar instant tax deduction will be introduced from the 2026-27 financial year, which taxpayers will be able to claim instead of individual work related expenses. The government's healthcare and education initiatives also fall under the umbrella of cost-of-living relief, because every policy this government introduces is underpinned by a laser-sharp focus on economic management. The cheaper medicines initiative, which began on 1 January this year and which reduced PBS medications to just $25 per script or $7.70 for concession card holders, was not just about health care. It is about easing the economic conditions for the average Australian household.”
“The mix of factors are relevant and present, but they do not necessarily matter to the millions of Australians—myself included—with a mortgage, who will need to manage the 25 basis point increase. Families and businesses will be impacted, and many will have to make difficult decisions. A decision may be widely expected, but it is still a decision that has impact. We are aware of this impact. The government understands that many Australians are still under pressure and that responsible cost-of-living relief remains important. That cost-of-living relief includes tax cuts for every Australian worker. In addition to the first round of tax cuts, Australian taxpayers will receive a further two rounds of personal income tax cuts from 1 July this year.”
“It's a mix of fluid and ever-changing factors that need to be constantly monitored and adapted to. Factors like the time of year, private demand, climate, the labour market, global challenges and government policy all play a role in the ingredients that make up the inflation cake. Sometimes one factor plays a bigger role, sometimes smaller. It's not linear, and it's not as simple as saying, 'Just cut this,' 'Just do that,' or, 'Just change this.' The current data shows that our inflation challenge is a mix of temporary factors, like the end of energy rebates and an increase in travel costs over the summer, and persistent pressures in areas like housing. This combination underpins the fact that inflation doesn't always moderate in a straight line.”
“I thank the member for Wentworth for her remarks, and I share her view that supporting the private sector, as the beating heart of productivity in this country, is vital. The economy, including productivity, the cost of living and growth, is central to the Albanese Labor government's agenda. Increases to productivity and growth are what this government's policy initiatives are directed at, as is providing help and assistance with the cost of living to Australian families. It is clear that inflation rates are higher than desirable, and we do not shy away from that. It is also clear that inflation is lower than its peak and significantly lower than when we came to government, but, history aside, it is still too high. Inflation and what drives it is not linear. It's not black and white. It's not one thing or another.”
“Considered and deliberate changes to make Medicare work better for women mean that over 71,000 women have undergone a menopause health assessment since 1 July 2025. Australian women are also benefiting from new Medicare items for longer consultation times and higher rebates for specialised gynaecological care. An additional 11 endometriosis and pelvic pain clinics have opened, with these new clinics providing perimenopause and menopause care. Dedicated investment in women's health happens when women have a seat at the table and can speak up for the needs of other women. With 57 per cent women in the Labor caucus, women have a seat at this table, which means they know their healthcare needs will be spoken for.”
“Twelve months ago today, the Albanese Labor government announced a record $800 million investment into a women's health package designed to provide more choice, lower costs and better care for Australian women and girls. One year on, the data is in: more than 660,000 women have accessed more than two million cheaper scripts for new contraceptives, menopausal hormone therapies and endometriosis treatment that were listed on the PBS. It is not 'one size fits all' when it comes to contraception, and more than 303,000 women have saved over $23 million in the past 12 months on scripts for a wide range of options. This level of choice is so important because every woman's health needs are different and unique to her.”
“The ATEC must cement public confidence in the higher education system and become a longstanding and trusted source of tertiary policy expertise and stewardship and be a strong, independent body operating under the strategic direction of government, facilitating the mission of universities to be places of high-quality teaching and research and development that drives innovation, productivity and economic prosperity. I stand with the Prime Minister and Minister for Education as they prosecute this agenda, and I commend the bill to the House. Debate adjourned.”
“The bill also provides the ATEC with the function of preparing reports and providing advice and recommendations on improving higher education, access, participation and outcomes for those facing systemic barriers to education. We are at a generational juncture, and this is the moment to design an enduring higher education system that serves Australia's interests for decades to come. In building on the strengths of the current tertiary education framework, the ATEC is part of a system that will underpin Australia's economic and social prosperity.”
“This bill requires the ATEC to have regard to the objective of improving outcomes for persons facing systematic barriers to education, including Aboriginal and Torres Strait Islanders, persons with a disability, persons from a low-socioeconomic background and persons living in regional Australia.”
“We must be prepared to manage these risks and invest in diverse R&D portfolios to balance the potential for high returns with the likelihood of setbacks. When setbacks are experienced, we must learn from them and continue to invest. Because risk is not only about what could go wrong; it is about what could go right. In order for these strategies to produce measurable and effective output, access to a skilled workforce is critical. Adelaide University recognises this and this bill, through the establishment of the ATEC, also recognises that. The ATEC will steward the tertiary education sector towards these strategic priorities to meet Australia's skills, knowledge and workforce demands. This can only be achieved with an educated workforce, which is why equity is at the core of the ATEC's work.”
“As the new Adelaide University's vision has articulated so clearly, collaborative efforts between academia, industry and government are crucial for pushing the boundaries of research and development. Collaborative R&D initiatives enable the sharing of knowledge, resources and expertise, leading to more robust and innovative outcomes. Well funded and targeted R&D can lead to improvements in social welfare, quality of life, environmental sustainability, economic growth and job creation and, importantly, national security. R&D must be a central pillar of national economic and innovation strategies, and these strategies must be prosecuted not only with vigour but with patience because R&D inherently involves risk. Not every research project leads to a breakthrough and many innovations may fail to reach commercialisation.”
“Investing in research means that new ideas can be explored and novel concepts can be worked on before they are introduced to the market. An exploration of this nature can lead to the discovery of new processes, technologies and materials that can improve and reshape industry. R&D is also a catalyst for economic growth because of the opportunities for new industries and job creation, increasing overall productivity and global competitiveness. It's a catalyst to address global challenges such as health, energy security and climate, with the ability to rapidly innovate and deploy new solutions so we can tackle these complex issues and then scale up commercial implementation and production. This is more important than ever but it's rarely a solitary endeavour.”
“High-quality and targeted research and development, or R&D, that delivers for industry by providing outcomes that are measurable, practical and capable of meaningful execution and implementation are critical to Australia remaining productive and competitive. We know that productivity growth drives economic growth and gains in living standards. We also know that a widely accepted key driver of productivity is innovation and that R&D is a major contributor to innovation activity. R&D is indispensable in today's innovation-driven economy. It acts as the engine that propels technological breakthroughs, spurring the development of new products, services and processes. So when we prioritise R&D, we are better positioned to adapt to market changes, capitalise on emerging trends and drive long-term growth. R&D is the catalyst for innovation.”
“It is forecasted to educate more than 70,000 students, about 13,000 more than both pre-existing universities do today, and it's also forecast to create an additional 1,200 jobs. A globally competitive university that is sustainably positioned to be in the top 50 universities in the world will not only be able to provide high-quality teaching to students of all economic backgrounds but, critically, will be able to secure a greater share of funding for high-quality, targeted research and to work actively and meaningfully with local businesses and industry. Funding for targeted and meaningful research and development has never been so important.”
“The new Adelaide University, under the leadership of Vice-Chancellor Professor Nicola Phillips, will be the largest educator of domestic students in Australia and will have the scale and resources to be sustainably positioned in the top 50 universities in the world. Two significant investments by the South Australian Malinauskas Labor government mean that this new university will be accessible to everyone with the capacity to succeed, regardless of their background. Firstly, there is the state government's $100 million student support fund, and then its foundation as a pre-eminent and world-leading research institution will be cemented thanks to the $200 million research fund. By 2034, the university is forecast to contribute an estimated additional $500 million a year to the South Australian economy.”
“Adelaide University's vision is to be a leading contemporary comprehensive university of global standing that is dedicated to ensuring the prosperity, wellbeing and cohesion of society by addressing educational inequality through both the actions of the university and the success and impact of its students, staff and alumni. By partnering with the community and partnering with industry, Adelaide University is well placed to realise its vision of conducting outstanding future-making research that has focus and scalability. In South Australia, this is a once-in-a-generation opportunity.”
“The commission will be guided by the national tertiary education objective and charged with responsibility to build and maintain a coalition of stakeholders in order to drive these sector reforms, to identify effective ways to leverage the collective resources of the tertiary education system so it delivers better outcomes and, finally, to ensure that the system itself is responding and agile to meet the needs of a changing society. In my home state of South Australia, we have recently witnessed the product of the changing needs of higher education with the merger of the University of Adelaide and the University of South Australia to become Adelaide University, which will welcome its first students this year.”
“The review also recommended that the commission should be an independent statutory authority answering to the education and skills ministers to enable it to provide robust advice and support evidence-based decision-making and planning. As a system steward, it will work in close collaboration with a broad cross-section of stakeholders within the tertiary education system, including universities but also non-university higher education providers, private VET providers, TAFEs, students, academic and professional staff, employers, industry, unions, bodies representing the various professions, research end users, alumni and all levels of government.”
“It will achieve this by doing a number of things, including delivering on this overarching objective; focusing the system on current and future skills needs; promoting access and opportunity; developing an improved understanding of the cost of delivery for providers and appropriate and fair levels of student contributions; promoting a diverse choice of institutional and study options by fostering a cohesive tertiary education system through the development of sound and sustainable policy; encouraging continuous improvement in tertiary education, research and research training; support for increasing the quality of the tertiary education workforce; and providing expert advice to the government and tertiary education system.”
“The ATEC, which this bill proposes as a statutory national body to plan and oversee the creation of a high-quality and cohesive tertiary education system to meet Australia's future needs, is what is required. The recommendation is that ATEC be established under legislation to work collaboratively with tertiary education institutions supporting the tertiary system to meet the needs of students, the community, research users and employers. The review identified that the functions of the ATEC should centre on policy coordination and development, system planning, pricing authority, funding allocation and the negotiation of mission based compacts for universities.”
“So, to implement this broad and ambitious change, the review recommended that the Australian government establish the Australian Tertiary Education Commission, which would be tasked with providing the leadership and stewardship necessary to transform the system. The breadth of the challenge and the breadth of the reform needed to meet the challenge must be coordinated, streamlined and efficient. Without this, reforms will run the risk of being fragmented, out of sync and not fit for purpose. The review delivered 46 other recommendations, but the key one relates to ATEC in that the Australian tertiary education sector needs a dynamic, collaborative and responsive system that serves the national interest.”
“It noted that there were chronic shortages of skilled professionals, including early childhood educators, teachers, aged-care workers, nurses and doctors. Increasingly, Australia is going to need greater numbers of engineers and others to transform our energy grid, advance our manufacturing sector, drive new discoveries and innovations, make our agriculture more sustainable and build new public infrastructure for our growing cities and regions. The recommendations proposed in the final review were broad, and they were ambitious. In order to successfully implement them, stronger leadership, planning and collaboration than is possible under the current system arrangements will be required, with a far greater emphasis on understanding policy and reform priorities and understanding evidence about the state of the system.”
“I rise today to speak in support of the Universities Accord (Australian Tertiary Education Commission) Bill 2025. In establishing the Australian Tertiary Education Commission as a steward of the higher education system, the bill implements a key recommendation from the Australian Universities Accord final report of 2024. The review that resulted in that final report was asked to examine Australia's higher education system and create a long-term plan for reform. The overarching theme can be simply stated. If Australia is to prosper in the years ahead, Australian participation, performance and investment in tertiary education needs to improve in order to generate the knowledge, skills and research our nation needs to meet our current and emerging social, economic and environmental challenges.”
“Through his extensive volunteering with the Campbelltown St John Ambulance cadet division and the Stradbroke scouts, Jordan mentors young people, instilling essential life skills, leadership qualities and strong civic values that shape those young people into responsible, community minded citizens who may be minded to serve their country in the way that Jordan did. There is only one Jordan, but there are thousands of active service personnel and veterans just like him, making huge contributions across society. This bill is part of the Albanese Labor government's drive to provide them and their families with simple and accessible care and support when they need it. I am proud to be part of a government with this motivation, and I stand with the Prime Minister and Minister Keogh in support of this commendable purpose.”
“His contribution spans emergency responses, youth development and cultural preservation. Jordan's selfless dedication transcends ordinary volunteerism, representing a lifetime philosophy of 'service before self'. What really sets Jordan apart is the remarkable breadth and depth of his contributions, which are sustained and meaningful and impact diverse sectors in our community, from life-saving emergency medical services to nurturing future leaders through youth organisations. Few individuals demonstrate such sustained excellence across diverse sectors. Jordan's ability to mentor young people while simultaneously serving as a frontline first responder showcases exceptional character and time management skills that benefit the entire community.”
“So we need a system that is fair, accessible and easy to use so that veterans can live life and contribute to the community and so that active service personnel can access the support they need to enable them to do their critical work effectively. And we know that there are thousands of active service personnel and veterans making incredible contributions to society. One such champion lives in my electorate of Sturt and was recently awarded the Citizen of the Year Award at the Campbelltown City Council Australia Day Awards. I first met Jordan Box, a corporal in the Australian Air Force Cadets, and his beautiful OPK9 dog Sally in 2025. Jordan has lived a life of service, and every day he exemplifies the highest ideals of citizenship through his extraordinary multidecade commitment to this country and to community service.”
“That is why this bill deals with so many matters—the review pathway, compensation for dependants of deceased veterans, funeral compensation, access to the MRCA education scheme, additional disablement amounts, Victoria Cross allowance and decoration allowance, service injuries, diseases and death arising from treatment and treatment for serving members. It is so broad reaching because we respect and are deeply grateful for the service, courage and dedication shown by active service personnel and veterans, all for the people of this great country. Often when people finish service, they do require care and support, but they also have a lot of life left to live, a lot of diverse contributions to make to their community.”
“So, although the amendments are minor and seem technical in nature, they are critical to facilitating an understanding of entitlements by veterans and their families and critical to facilitating faster claim processing times. The simplification and harmonisation of the veteran compensation system form some of the most significant reform in a century to how veterans are supported in this country. The changes will enable veterans and their families to get the support they need and deserve when they need it.”
“Importantly, the bill will also make amendments to continue to exclude the Victoria Cross allowance and decoration allowance from income test arrangements and clarify that there is coverage for conditions resulting from the unintended consequences of treatment provided or paid for by Defence during service, or later by the DVA. Lastly, the bill makes amendments to ensure existing access to non-liability healthcare arrangements for serving members are maintained through the transfer from the Veterans' Entitlements Act to the MRCA. These technical amendments that have been outlined are being implemented to ensure that all of the legislative requirements are in place so that the shift from the tri-act system to just the one act can be done smoothly. It is so important to get this right.”
“Veterans who meet the criteria for additional disablement amounts or special-rate disability pension do not need to meet additional criteria to enable their eligible children to access education assistance through the Military Rehabilitation and Compensation Act education and training scheme. Equally, the bill clarifies that gold cards are provided to eligible veterans without requiring them to meet additional criteria, and it amends the service pension criteria so that, after the date of 1 July 2026, the partners of eligible veterans are eligible for the partner service pension from the age of 50, to harmonise with current eligibility and age requirements that are available to partners of extreme disablement amount veterans under the current veterans entitlement framework.”
“In terms of the other operational effects of this bill, it also amends recovery provisions so that amounts already paid under the Veterans' Entitlements Act from any Military Rehabilitation and Compensation Act arrears payable to a dependant for the equivalent benefits for the same period can be subtracted. In addition, it clarifies the circumstances under which a partner may receive additional lump sum compensation for service related death claimed on or after 1 July 2026, and it ensures that this amount is available in respect of all service related deaths on or after this date. Further, with respect to funeral compensation amounts already payable under the MRCA, the bill sets out that the higher rate is available to anyone who meets the eligibility criteria, even if they also fall within the criteria for a lower amount.”
“Pursuant to the VETS act, from 1 July 2026, all veterans' rehabilitation and compensation claims will be dealt with under a single piece of legislation—not three—which is known as the MRCA or the recrafted Military Rehabilitation and Compensation Act 2004. To ensure that that date can be met, a number of technical amendments to the VETS act are required, and that is what the bill before us does. In essence, it supports effective implementation and effective governance. What it doesn't do is change the intended operational effect of the VETS act.”