THE SQUIZ
The Royal Commission into Defence and Veteran Suicide is a year into its inquiry and it has another 2 years to run, but 13 urgent recommendations were made in its interim report handed down yesterday. Eight have to do with making things easier for future hearings, including giving better legal protections to those who have sensitive information to share. And 5 recommendations are about improving the Department of Veterans’ Affairs’ compensation and rehabilitation claims processes and staffing. The system is “so complicated” that the Commission has found it can contribute to the suicide rate of serving and former members of the Australian Defence Force. “Behind each claim is a veteran who needs support, and it is gravely important that this assistance is provided as quickly as possible – lives and livelihoods depend on it,” Commission chair Nick Kaldas said.

BACK IT UP A BIT…
Former PM Scott Morrison launched the Royal Commission in April last year after a long-running campaign from the defence community, affected families, and pressure from MPs and Senators. And it’s core purpose is to look into what’s behind the climbing number of serving and ex-servicemen and women taking their own lives. According to the Australian Institute of Health and Welfare, 1,273 veterans and serving personnel died by suicide between 2001 and 2019. Many campaigners put that number next to the 41 Australian troops who died during the almost 20-year-long conflict in Afghanistan. Initially, the former Coalition government proposed an independent commissioner to investigate the suicides, but the legislation failed to receive support in the Senate, where crossbenchers, including former soldier Jacqui Lambie who gave evidence last week, demanded a Royal Commission. And this is the first formal report of what they’ve found.

SO WILL THE CHANGES BE MADE?
It’s a good question because the report says 50 reports and more than 750 recommendations have been delivered on these issues in the past 22 years… Veterans Affairs Minister Matt Keogh offered an apology and said the report’s recommendations would be considered. “Clearly, something’s not working in Defence and Veterans Affairs,” he said. And the Coalition’s Shadow Assistant Minister for Defence Phillip Thompson – who was wounded while serving in Afghanistan and has lost friends “to their war within” – said a lot more needs to be done, but the report has “shone a spotlight on the darkest corners which will allow us to finally take the necessary action”. As for Senator Lambie, she says the Commission’s on the right track, and the government needs to act. “I will pound them every step of the day until those recommendations are implemented,” she said.

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