Mr CHESTER (Gippsland—Deputy Leader of the House, Minister for Defence Personnel and Minister for Veterans' Affairs) (18:30): I'm well aware that, due to divisions, the time to respond has been significantly diminished for the Veterans' Affairs portfolio, but I thought it was important to give members a chance to raise their concerns. For any concerns I haven't got the chance to address this evening, I will seek to respond in writing to the members. I want to thank all members for their contributions—the members for Herbert, Braddon, Paterson and Blair. Thank you for your contributions and the issues you've raised.
What concerns me a great deal right now is that there is a general tone to the debate in relation to our veteran community which runs the risk of doing more harm than good. I was in Townsville recently with the member for Herbert, and one of the veterans said to me, 'Hope is like oxygen to a drowning man.' The point he was making was that we need to actually provide hope to our veterans who may be struggling at any point in time. What this government has done consistently year after year is invest more in services to support our veterans and their families; not to force it upon them in a Canberra-centric approach but to work with those communities and ex-service organisations. We partner with them to look at new models of delivering service and look at ways of supporting those veterans who may require some assistance, whether it's with their physical health or their mental health.
The contrast in approach that we're starting to see now from those opposite alarms me. It alarms me that we are in a position where those opposite are tending towards negativity to the point of taking hope away from our veterans. I caution those opposite from that approach. The contrast in approach from those opposite needs to be called out. I call on those opposite to work constructively, as historically it has been a portfolio where people have worked in very constructive manner. Those opposite may take exception to it, but they're being called out on the fact they have been very negative about the veterans portfolio in recent months, and it runs the risk of talking Australian veterans down and eroding hope.
Opposition members interjecting—
Mr CHESTER: Those opposite can dish out criticism, but they don't seem to be able to take it in return. The facts don't match the rhetoric of those opposite. The investment by the Australian government of Australian taxpayers' money, $11.7 billion in this year's budget, is a very significant commitment to those who served our nation and to their families.
Australians can be proud of the fact that the overwhelming majority of people who serve in the Australian Defence Force serve with great pride. It is some of the finest moments of their life. They are satisfied with the way they make a contribution to our nation, and then they transition well to civilian life. If we continue to portray all veterans as broken, bad or damaged goods it will be very difficult to attract them to future employment opportunities in the private sector. I encourage those opposite to join with the government in promoting the achievements of our veterans, notwithstanding the fact that there are many who require additional services and support upon transition. I encourage those opposite to work with the government in a more constructive manner in the future. This year's budget does see further investment in wellbeing centres.
Mr Husic: You're a total fraud.
Mr CHESTER: I take exception to the member opposite's comment. A person who has never sought a single briefing from me on veterans' issues is now calling me a fraud. That's outrageous. I take exception to that comment. Thank you for raising the point. You've never raised a single veterans' issue with me. Not one. How long have you been here? Not one veterans' issue have you ever raised with me.
I look forward to responding to the issues in relation to the staff employment details. As members on this side of the House indicated, this year's budget saw a very significant investment in additional support for our veteran community, with an additional 440 APS staff to be employed to assist in the time taken to process claims. There is no question the time taken to process claims has been an issue of concern for the Department of Veterans' Affairs and for me as minister for many months—in fact, for more than a year now. What we've seen is a record number of people coming forward to make claims, which is a positive, because veterans are actually seeking support when they need it, and the challenge now for the government is to ensure that support is provided in a timely manner.
In relation to the wellbeing centres, I can report that, as recently as last week, the Townsville wellbeing centre, The Oasis, was opened in the seat of the member for Herbert. It has taken a great deal of community effort to get to this point. What I would say in relation to the wellbeing centres—and I take the comments of those opposite on board—is that their intention is to make sure they are local solutions to local problems driven by local communities. So it is not a question of Canberra saying, 'This is what every wellbeing centre is going to look like.' We will work with those communities based on need to ensure we are delivering services in the communities for the families and for the veterans when they need it.
Proposed expenditure agreed to.
