The Department of Veterans’ Affairs (DVA) has commissioned an independent study of how current and former Australian Defence Force (ADF) members and their families are being assisted to access entitlements and services.
The Veterans’ Advocacy and Support Services Scoping Study is being led by former Secretary of the Attorney-General’s Department, Robert Cornall and is expected to report in December.
DVA said the study followed changes to the current advocacy system recommended by two Parliamentary Committees.
It said the aim of the study would be to determine the most suitable advocacy model for Australian veterans and their families.
It said the model must be efficient, effective and, at a minimum, comparable in quality and value with those available to Australian civilians in accessing Government entitlements.
It said it should be based on veterans’ individual needs and protect their interests; be sustainable, consistent and scalable to meet fluctuations in demand; and provide personalised advice when claims were unsuccessful, with options for appeals.
“The veteran, ex-service and Defence communities are being widely consulted as part of the advocacy study, including younger veterans, female veterans and veterans’ families,” DVA said.
“The study is also seeking the views of relevant policy and technical stakeholders in Australia and overseas, including the Veterans’ Review Board.”
Minister for Veterans’ Affairs, Darren Chester said veterans and their families deserved to have easy access to the best services available to them and this study had been established to ensure that happened.
“This study will go a long way to helping our younger veterans and their families navigate the compensation claims and appeals processes and it will address a number of improvements to the current advocacy model,” Mr Chester said.
He said public submissions would be accepted until the middle of the year, and a discussion paper was being prepared to assist organisations and individuals in developing their submissions.
