LEGISLATION introduced today by the Attorney-General is a significant step forward in the establishment of the National Commissioner for Defence and Veteran Suicide Prevention — a powerful new independent and enduring body focused on understanding and addressing the risk factors of defence force and veteran suicide. This legislation will formally create the National Commissioner position and sets out the National Commissioner’s functions and powers.
The National Commissioner will have powers to inquire fully into deaths by suicide among Australian Defence Force (ADF) members and veterans.
Minister for Veterans’ Affairs Darren Chester said suicide prevention was one of the Government’s highest priorities, including when it came to the men and women who serve or have served in the nation’s defence force.
“Each year, too many of our fellow Australians take their own lives, and the defence and veteran community are not immune. The death of a current or former ADF member is tragic and it is felt deeply by their family, friends, colleagues and ex-service community,” Mr Chester said....MORE
