Radio Interview - ABC RN Breakfast

E&OE TRANSCRIPT
RADIO INTERVIEW
ABC RN BREAKFAST 
THURSDAY, 25 APRIL 2024

SUBJECTS: Anzac Day; Royal Commission into Defence and Veteran Suicide.

HOST, PATRICIA KARVELAS: Thousands of servicemen and women are gathering this morning to commemorate Anzac Day. It is a day to remember the sacrifices of Australian soldiers in previous wars and supporting the men and women who have served since. But this year, commemorations come as the Royal Commission prepares to hand down its findings later this year into the high rates of suicide among ex-military personnel and amid calls for better mental health services for all of our veterans. Matt Keogh is the Minister for Veterans’ Affairs and Defence Personnel and he's in France and I spoke to him a short time ago. Matt Keogh, welcome to the program.

MINISTER FOR VETERANS’ AFFAIRS AND DEFENCE PERSONNEL, MATT KEOGH: Great to be with you.

PATRICIA KARVELAS: Talk us through what you're doing in France.

MINISTER KEOGH: So the main commemoration for Anzac Day will be this morning and I'll be giving the commemorative address at the Sir John Monash Centre at Villers-Bretonneux, which was obviously the site of major battles here on the Western Front. But I've also been participating in a number of other commemorative services in the lead up to Anzac Day, as well as meeting with families that had their loved ones engaged in the Western Front here during the First World War.

PATRICIA KARVELAS: How do you think the nature of Anzac Day has changed over the last few decades, both at home in Australia and, of course, overseas, where you are?

MINISTER KEOGH: Well, certainly, if we look at it over a span of decades, I think what we've seen is a continued improvement of the way in which Australians have really engaged around understanding the nature of, not just Anzac Day as a commemoration of what happened in Gallipoli, but also Australia's involvement in conflicts that have occurred ever since. And certainly being here and meeting with veterans, meeting with family members of people who fought here, meeting with school groups, shows that there's a huge level of engagement, of people looking to understand their own family stories and their connection to Australia's service overseas.

PATRICIA KARVELAS: Anzac Day, of course, is about remembering the sacrifices that have been made by our servicemen and women, and we remember their service in a range of theatres. I have spoken, though still, to people who have served in Afghanistan and more recent wars who feel like their service is still not understood on days like these. Do we need to put more effort into making sure we honour all of our service people?

MINISTER KEOGH: Well absolutely days like Anzac Day are not just about commemorating Gallipoli or the Western Front, the First World War or the Second World War. They are about commemorating that service of people, over 2 million people that have served in the Australian Defence Force over all wars, conflicts and peacekeeping service as well. And the more we make sure that we commemorate that service on days like Anzac Day and tell those stories across the breadth of Australian service, the greater that understanding of our most recent engagements can be understood across the community. And I think like we've seen with the Second World War, the Vietnam War, the Korean War, it takes time for the broader community to build that understanding of what those conflicts involved and the impact of those conflicts on the people who served in them and their families as well. And we're certainly seeing, whilst there's more understanding to be gained, we are seeing that understanding growing in the community.

PATRICIA KARVELAS: The Royal Commission, of course, into Veteran Suicide will soon end and the Commissioners will give their final report to the Government in September. At the final public hearing, the outgoing Australian Defence Force Chief, Angus Campbell, apologised for the failures of the ADF and pledged to do better. Do you believe the Defence Force has improved its culture?

MINISTER KEOGH: Certainly the comments made by the Chief of Defence Force there reflected the apology that I gave as soon as becoming the Veterans’ Minister as soon and coming into Government, that we all acknowledge that things have not gone as people would have expected. And I think we have seen an improvement over time in the way in which we support our serving personnel and support our veterans. But the clear acknowledgement of why we supported the need for a Royal Commission, was so that we can get the benefit of the evidence that they have taken and their thinking on these issues, so that we can further improve what we need to do for those in service and for veterans and families. And that's why we completely look forward to seeing and receiving those recommendations from the Royal Commission later this year.

PATRICIA KARVELAS: And, of course, Anzac Day has become a really important day, even for younger Australians to think about service and the history of war for our own country. But at the same time, we're having this Royal Commission discussing the issues that veterans are still dealing with. The Chief Commissioner for the Royal Commission into Defence and Veteran Suicide, Nick Kaldas, has told Guardian Australia that he believes the Defence Force should consider formally acknowledging and commemorating military personnel whose service causes wounds or costs their lives away from the battlefield. Is that something that we should be considering?

MINISTER KEOGH: Well, certainly even this year we saw the unveiling of a sculpture in the gardens of the Australian War Memorial that goes to exactly that issue. And it is something that we do speak about on days of commemoration like Anzac Day and Remembrance Day. And it is something that I think we are ensuring that the broader Australian community understand more fully as part of the issues that certainly result from engagement in war and conflict, as well as from other aspects of service. And that's key to why supporting and holding the Royal Commission like we have has been important and we continue to engage on improving our understanding of those issues. But at the same time really recognising that service and sacrifice of people who have served in the Defence Force and remembering the nature of those conflicts over more than a century now.

PATRICIA KARVELAS: Of course, there's been other issues that have emerged, too. We know that Veterans’ Affairs has been a department that veterans have found difficult to deal with, even re-traumatising. Earlier this year, you released an exposure draft of a bill aimed at simplifying and harmonising the century old system for returned servicemen and women seeking entitlements and compensation and rehabilitation. Have you determined yet what the cost will be for the greater allowances for funerals and special assistance and travel reimbursement for treatment?

MINISTER KEOGH: Well, I don't want to pre-empt anything that may be set out in the Budget, Patricia, certainly not on a day like Anzac Day, where we do want to make sure that this is a day where we're primarily reflecting on the nature of service and the impact on our serving personnel and veterans and families and as a day of reflection and commemoration. But certainly that's been an issue that we have turned our minds to in developing the exposure draft of legislation, and the consultation period on that closes very shortly and we'll be then able to set out the associated costs that come with that. You know, that's an important part of proceeding with this simplification and as you point out, this is about making sure that we make it easier for veterans to understand what they're entitled to, simpler for advocates to assist them in lodging claims with the Department, and quicker for the Department to process claims so that veterans and families can get the support that they need and deserve.

PATRICIA KARVELAS: Matt Keogh, thank you so much for joining us this morning.

MINISTER KEOGH: It's been great to be with you. Thanks, Patricia.

END
 

Open Arms – Veterans & Families Counselling provides 24/7 free confidential crisis support for current and ex-serving ADF personnel and their families on 1800 011 046 or the Open Arms website. Safe Zone Support provides anonymous counselling on 1800 142 072. Defence All-Hours Support Line provides support for ADF personnel on 1800 628 036 or the Defence Health Portal. Defence Member and Family Helpline provides support for Defence families on 1800 624 608