Doorstop interview, Parliament House

E&OE TRANSCRIPT
DOORSTOP
PARLIAMENT HOUSE
TUESDAY, 10 SEPTEMBER 2024

SUBJECTS: Final Report from the Royal Commission into Defence and Veteran Suicide.

JOURNALIST: Sexual assaults as been reported to the ADF at the moment across the last five years, that's been the average. It doesn't seem like something that can wait to change the culture, so things like that aren't acceptable. What's the Government going to do now to address these cultural issues?

MINISTER FOR VETERANS’ AFFAIRS AND DEFENCE PERSONNEL, MATT KEOGH: So certainly any level of sexual assault in any organisation, especially our Defence Force, is entirely unacceptable. And it's why we made sure there was a special respect at work regime that covered the Defence Force, because often they're excluded from other workplace arrangements. So we made sure that there was a special respect at work regime that applied specifically to the Australian Defence Force and that it operated outside of the chain of command. But given what the content of the Report, and we're still working through the 3,100 pages of this Final Report of the Royal Commission, and the recommendations that go to those issues, we're going to look at them very seriously.

JOURNALIST: At the moment the ADF doesn't know how many people who are serving have been convicted of a sexual offence in a civilian court. Do you think people who have been convicted of a sexual assault or a sexual offence should be able to serve in the ADF?

MINISTER KEOGH: Certainly it surprises me that that is the case, and I think it's a great concern for anyone, especially those serving in the Defence Force. I know there's some specific recommendations that goes to things that should occur about people who are convicted of those sorts of offences and whether they should continue serving in the Defence Force or not, and we’ll be looking at those recommendations, as we will with all of the recommendations, we'll be taking them very seriously.

JOURNALIST: Your Government won't respond to all the recommendations yet, but do you accept that the Department of Veterans’ Affairs doesn't have the capability or capacity to support wellbeing in the way that it really needs to be done for veterans?

MINISTER KEOGH: The Royal Commission points out that the work that the Department of Veterans’ Affairs was set up to undertake was really about responding to rehabilitation and compensation and pensions and not really set up initially to deal with issues like wellbeing. We have started down that pathway of trying to improve that, and that's what our Veterans’ and Families’ Hubs are all about. The Royal Commission's acknowledged more work needs to be done there, and it's made recommendations about how that work can be expanded. I don't think that's surprising to anybody, and we will work through the detail of that because there's quite a bit of detail that they unpack behind those recommendations as well.

JOURNALIST: A veteran I’ve spoken to in the last day, said that they found the ADF was the employer of choice for bullies and sexual predators. How does that make you feel?

MINISTER KEOGH: Well, that view is very concerning to me, and I understand for victims, they certainly feel that their experience has not been the right one and it hasn't been. And that's what the Royal Commission goes to in much of its, the evidence they have heard and what it's included in its Final Report and indeed in its Interim Report back in 2022 as well. We want to make sure Defence is an employer of choice. We want to encourage people to continue to join our Defence Force, and that's why implementing recommendations like those that go to culture and Defence Force is so important. Thanks very much.

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