Veterans Entitlements, Treatment and Support
This is a real landmark piece of legislation that many governments have thought about in the past, but it's the sort of thing that only Labor governments like ours actually do and do the hard yards on. I'm very pleased to be able to speak to this harmonised veteran compensation and rehabilitation legislation, the Veterans' Entitlements, Treatment and Support (Simplification and Harmonisation) Bill 2024.
When the royal commission handed down its report, it made the observation that the current system of veterans entitlements is so complicated that it adversely affects the mental health of some veterans and their families. I have certainly seen, in my own office, instances where people are almost broken by this system and their mental health is really badly affected. Calls to address this complexity have been coming, as I say, for a long time.
This is actually the most significant commitment from a government to simplifying veterans legislation since the introduction of the Military Rehabilitation and Compensation Act 20 years ago. For those who aren't familiar with the current model, it's probably worthwhile for me to explain how veterans entitlements are determined. Under the current model they come under one or more of three primary compensation acts—the Military Rehabilitation and Compensation Act 2004, which is called the MRCA; the Veterans' Entitlements Act 1986, the VEA; and/or the Safety, Rehabilitation and Compensation (Defence-related Claims) Act 1988, which is known as the DRCA—depending on when the veterans served and which periods of service caused or contributed to the condition being claimed.
That system is overly complex and very difficult to understand, so in 2019 the Productivity Commission recommended that the three acts be streamlined into two. We've taken that one step further. This bill streamlines the number of acts the Department of Veterans' Affairs currently administers from three to one, which will greatly simplify the claims process and provide veterans and their families with faster support.
Under the revised arrangements the VEA and the DRCA will continue in a limited form. They'll be grandparented to support the single-act model but will be closed to new claims for compensation and rehabilitation from 1 July 2026.
The bill also introduces a range of enhancements to the MRCA that will make access to entitlements easier and fairer for veterans. A lot of those changes and enhancements have been shaped by feedback from veterans. I'm very grateful that there have been so many opportunities for consultation with the people who are most affected by this: the veterans, their families and those who will be veterans in future years.
Some of the enhancements include compensation for funeral expenses being consolidated in the MRCA. The cap on funeral compensation will be moved to the MRCA and increased from $2,000 to $3,000. There's also a legislative basis for benefits like the Acute Support Package, household services, attendant care, a Victoria Cross allowance, ex-gratia payments and recognition of supplements for former prisoners of war. They will all be moved into the MRCA.
A new payment called the additional disablement amount, or ADA, will also be introduced into the MRCA. Similar to the extreme disablement adjustment, this new payment will benefit veterans who are over pension age with significant service-related impairment. Like the extreme disablement adjustment, dependents of deceased ADA veterans will also have access to the gold card and other benefits in the event of their death.
Importantly, in these big changes, no individual veteran will suffer a reduction to their existing payments. Compensation previously awarded under the DRCA or VEA will not be disrupted. They will all be grandparented. The funding for the enhancements that will be delivered through these changes were included in the May 2024 budget, with $222 million additional funding to help ensure veterans are aware of how all this will work and are able to be supported. It's starting on 1 July 2026. That seems like a long way off, but there's a reason for that.
It's to ensure the veteran community is well informed of what these changes mean for them and provides enough time for individuals to consider their own circumstances.
The date also allows for adequate training of advocates, the very important advocates who walk side-by-side with veterans as they navigate these challenging things and for DVA staff to be trained in the changes well ahead of commencement. Locally, the new veterans and defence families hub in the Hawkesbury will be a really important part of ensuring there's a good understanding of these changes and well-trained and skilled people to support veterans.
That hub will help people right across Macquarie and was one of my election commitments. I'm looking forward to continuing to work closely with RSL LifeCare as they determine the location of it and the services that will be provided. They're doing that in consultation with and taking advice from people who are currently veterans in our region and the Greater Western Sydney region, but also from defence families who will be using these services in years to come.
The hub is a place that, right now, families of defence personnel or veterans can access information. I think the real difference will be that instead of people having to scramble to find the right support, it will be all there in one place in the Hawkesbury. I was so pleased to be able to catch up with representatives of RSL LifeCare at the recent RAAF Base Richmond open day. I had a long talk to them about the sorts of services that are delivered in other places and the recognition that the Hawkesbury and right across this band, from north-west Sydney to south-west Sydney where there will be another veterans hub, will require particular things that are pertinent to the local community.
It's a really important piece of legislation and our facility, the hub, will be a really significant part of ensuring that, going forward, veterans and their families are able to access the information they need so they're well supported when they leave the Defence Force. I commend this bill to the House.
