Senate Foreign Affairs, Defence and Trade Legislation Committee 
Department of Veterans' Affairs 

20 November, 2013

Senator WRIGHT: My question is about the previous granting of deductible gift recipient status to the Peacekeeping Memorial Project to 31 December 2014. Can you advise whether this status will be extended past that date and, if it is not known yet, what the time frame for that decision will be?

Senate Foreign Affairs, Defence and Trade Legislation Committee 
Department of Veterans' Affairs 

20 November, 2013

Senator WRIGHT: I am just interested to know: is the issue of expanding compensation for veterans of the nuclear testing at Maralinga in the 1950s and 1960s under consideration by the Department of Veterans' Affairs?

Mr Lewis: Not that I am aware of.

Senate Foreign Affairs, Defence and Trade Legislation Committee 
Department of Veterans' Affairs 

20 November, 2013

Senator WRIGHT: I have some brief questions on veterans mental health. I understand the department runs eight veterans-only psychiatric facilities around the country. Is that correct?

Senate Foreign Affairs, Defence and Trade Legislation Committee 
Department of Veterans' Affairs 

20 November, 2013

The Australian Greens have called for the Coalition Government to urgently respond to rising suicide and PTSD rates in the Australian Defence Forces.

Spokesperson on mental health and veterans' affairs, Senator Penny Wright, urged Defence Minister David Johnston to reveal his plan to improve mental health support for servicemen and women.

Australian Greens spokesperson for Veterans' Affairs Senator Penny Wright has praised the advocacy and community campaigning which has led to the inclusion of peacekeepers on the Honour Roll at the Australian War Memorial.

Speaking at the unveiling today, Senator Wright said tens of thousands of Australians had been involved in this campaign to properly commemorate peacekeepers who have fallen in the line of duty.

Queensland's Mates4Mates veterans' program would be expanded nationally to assist the new wave of servicemen and women returning from Iraq and Afghanistan as part of a new approach to caring for veterans announced by the Australian Greens today.

The Greens believe that if we are prepared to send men and women to serve Australia on our behalf, we have a responsibility to care for them properly when they return.

This means ensuring they have access to proper support, including mental health and wellbeing services, and making sure service personnel who are injured are not financially disadvantaged while they are being treated.

Australian Greens spokesperson for veterans' affairs, Senator Penny Wright, has used Vietnam Veterans Day today to call on the Australian Government for better recognition of veterans' mental health causes.

Senator Wright said it was important Australia applied the lessons learnt from the Vietnam War and recognised the significant and long-lasting impacts of war experienced by veterans and their families.