House of Representatives

Explanatory Memorandum

(Circulated by authority of the Minister for Veterans' Affairs and Minister for Defence Personnel, the Honourable Matthew James Keogh MP)

Statement of Compatibility with Human Rights

Prepared in accordance with Part 3 of the Human Rights (Parliamentary Scrutiny) Act 2011

Veterans' Entitlements, Treatment and Support (Simplification and Harmonisation) Bill 2024

This Bill is compatible with the human rights and freedoms recognised or declared in the international instruments listed in section 3 of the Human Rights (Parliamentary Scrutiny) Act 2011.

Overview of the Bill/Disallowable Legislative Instrument

The Military Rehabilitation and Compensation Act 2004 (MRCA; the Act) provides for rehabilitation, compensation and other benefits for current and former members of the Defence Force who suffer a service injury or disease. The Act also provides benefits for dependants of deceased members.

The current legislative framework underpinning the provision veterans entitlements is widely acknowledged as complex, difficult to navigate and challenging to administer. This complexity has developed over decades and impacts veterans, their families, advocates and DVA staff, directly contributing to delays and inconsistent claims processing.

Under the modified framework, the VEA and the DRCA will be closed to new claims, with the MRCA remaining as the sole ongoing scheme for all new claims, irrespective of where the veteran served or when their injury, illness or death occurred.

Veterans and dependants currently in receipt of compensation under the VEA or the DRCA will continue to receive those payments under grand parenting arrangements. Some parts of the old Acts will also remain undisturbed, including provisions in the VEA that are not considered compensation (e.g. means-tested income support payments).

These amendments will simplify access to and understanding of entitlements for veterans and families, producing an overall harmonised scheme of entitlements for veterans.

Human rights implications

The Bill engages the following human rights:

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The right to social security, under article 9 of the International Convention on Economic, Social and Cultural Rights (ICESCR).

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The right to an independent, impartial and competent court or tribunal, under article 14(1) of the International Covenant on Civil and Political Rights (ICCPR).

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The right to privacy and reputation, under article 17 of the ICCPR.

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The right to health, under article 12(1) of the ICESCR.

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The right to education, under article 13 of the ICESCR.

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The right to safe and healthy working conditions, under article 9 of the ICESCR.

The right to social security

The majority of amendments contained in this Bill contribute to the provision of access to the right to social security. Measures that are considered to provide social security include non-contributory schemes, such as pensions, which can apply to everyone in a particular group or be targeted at people with specific needs.

Article 9 of the ICESCR provides for the right of everyone to social security, including social insurance. Elaborating on Article 9, the Committee on Economic, Social and Cultural Rights provided in General Comment 19 that 'States parties should ... ensure the protection of workers who are injured in the course of employment or other productive work'. Military compensation is analogous to social insurance in that it provides payment of wages and medical costs in respect of injuries, diseases or death occurring as a result of service.

The amendments to the liability provisions of the Act are intended to improve the physical and mental health outcomes for former ADF personnel covered by the three Acts, by simplifying their access to compensation.

These improvements are achieved by making the most modern Act, the MRCA, the only legislation that will apply to new compensation claims going forward from 1 July 2026, with existing VEA/DRCA entitlements operating to preserve existing payments. The proposed single ongoing Act model will address longstanding complexities and difficulties inherent in the current legislative framework, and ensure maximum simplification for the administration of claims by removing complexities associated with the existing tri-Act framework. This would result in a system that veterans, families and advocates find easier to navigate and less confusing, as well as being more efficient and streamlined for DVA to administer.

The right to a an independent, impartial and competent court or tribunal

The MRCA, DRCA and the VEA will be amended to standardise the review pathway for all veteran compensation claims, ahead of the commencement of the single ongoing act.

The amendments are compatible with the right to a an independent, impartial and competent court or tribunal, by making consistent the application of a common appeal pathway for all veterans and by making the Veterans' Review Board, which is a less adversarial, veteran-friendly environment, where matters can be resolved without the involvement of lawyers, available to all veterans.

Veterans currently in receipt of compensation under the DRCA and/or the VEA will transition to the MRCA only upon the acceptance of a new claim for liability under the MRCA or where there has been a deterioration in a veteran's impairment that constitutes at least five impairment points under the MRCA since their last assessment. This minimal limitation on the right to social security operates to provide certainty to veterans and leaves the decision to claim under the MRCA to each individual veteran, and in no way diminishes veterans' capacity to maintain their existing levels of benefits.

Right to privacy and reputation

The legislative basis for the exchange of information between DVA and Defence varies between each of the current Acts. Amendments to the Act will continue the existing authority relating to the exchange of information between, to facilitate the investigation and determination of claims, promoting the right to privacy.

Right to health

The proposed amendments operate to continue the availability of medical treatment for veterans (and some dependants), usually on the basis that the Commonwealth has accepted liability for medical conditions that were caused by service in the Australian Defence Force. Treatment of some additional conditions, however, is provided on a on a non-liability basis.

Amendments to the liability provisions of the Act are intended to improve the physical and mental health outcomes for former ADF personnel covered by the three Acts, by simplifying their access to compensation. The broad access to medical treatment for veterans and some dependants is compatible with the right to health.

Right to education

Both the MRCA and the VEA have Education Schemes which offer financial assistance, student support services and counselling to the children of certain eligible veterans. The DRCA does not have an equivalent scheme in place.

Amendments will be made to the Act to allow access to DVA education schemes for eligible children of DRCA veterans who transition across to the MRCA via the acceptance of a new claim or a five-impairment point deterioration/worsening of an existing impairment. These amendments are compatible with the right to an education, and extend education access to children of additional veterans.

Right to work

Existing firefighter-specific compensation coverage (including for certain cohorts, and defined cancers and other diseases) in the DRCA will be continued under the MRCA, with no change to eligibility requirements. This coverage will include the support scheme established under the DRCA for ADF personnel who participated in fire training at the Royal Australian Air Force Base Point Cook Fire Training School between 1 January 1957 and 31 December 1986.

Existing compensation coverage for ADF members associated with F-111 fuel-tank maintenance work (commonly referred as the 'Deseal/Reseal' programs) in the DRCA will be continued under the MRCA, with no change to eligibility requirements and benefits.

Although serving to continue existing coverage, these amendments directly recognise that the right to safe and healthy working conditions may not have always been available to certain veteran cohorts.

The existing blanket exclusion in the MRCA for conditions relating to the use of tobacco products will be modified to introduce an exception to the exclusion, for service up to 1 January 1998, to align with the current VEA provision.

These amendments support the right to a healthy environment and acknowledge that exposure to tobacco smoke is not always voluntary.

Conclusion

The Bill is compatible with human rights. It advances the right to social security, to health, to education, and to safe and healthy working conditions, along with the right to an independent, impartial and competent court or tribunal, and the right to freedom from arbitrary and unlawful interference with privacy. To the extent that the Bill limits any human rights, those limitations are reasonable, necessary, and proportionate.