um as we wrap up our 10th public hearing we Commissioners would like to thank everyone who has engaged with us here in South Australia our time in Adelaide has been invaluable meeting serving and ex-serving members hearing about the services that are helping to support them and their families we've been buoyed by the spike in submissions we've seen over the course of this hearing block a total of 86 submissions including 16 from South Australia since last week we continue to encourage anyone who wishes to share with us their experiences of military and post-military Life to make a submission prior to the 13th of October this year this Royal commission is examining entrenched cultural structural and systemic issues that have failed our serving and ex-serving Australian Defense Force personnel and their families for decades and led to poor mental health and well-being outcomes and indeed contributed to high rates of suicide and suicidal behavior in our military community as we approached this hearing block we noted the findings and outcomes of the Rober debt Royal commission where commissioner Catherine Holmes comments in the preface the report were instructive I quote whether a public service can be developed with sufficient robustness to ensure that something like the like of the robeated scheme could not occur again will depend on the will of the government of the day because culture is set from the top down we could not agree more the dozens of related inquiries and hundreds of recommendations that preceded this commission are Testament this hearing is focused on five key areas of Investigation the career path of Defense members including postings promotions and career management the support needs of Defense members and their families safety in the workplace including the importance of addressing organizational and operational stresses the link between physical injury and poor mental health outcomes and the need for robust injury prevention approaches the critical role that leadership and accountability at all levels plays in relation to changing culture and the impact of organizational culture and climate on mental health and well-being and the Department of Veteran Affairs and in particular an update on the processing of claims and a review of a pilot scheme and the veteran-centric reform program evidence heard during this hearing block has raised questions as to whether leadership within defense has been taking adequate And Timely action in response to the very real and pressing issues of suicides and suicidality within its ranks we heard from deputy secretary Justine Gregg PSM about the work to be done to introduce internal reforms within the ADF and defense to focus on better protecting and supporting members mental health and well-being and the many internal issues that have been have hindered meaningful progress in that regard including a lack of communication changes to organizational structure and Reporting lines diffuse accountabilities and a lack of transparency competing and shifting priorities commanders not receiving critical information about culture and the experience of members under their command and a failure to meet biannual reporting deadlines on the 2018-2023 mental health strategy we're concerned that the internal reforms being considered by defense are taking too long and there is no certainty that they will lead to meaningful improvements in members mental health and well-being we also heard evidence of successful programs and research being discontinued or defunded by defense that includes a key initiative shown to significantly reduce injury injury rates among military personnel and improve the reporting of injuries which had its funding withdrawn as Dr Stefan rootsky told the commission and I quote Army saw its value but did not wish it to fund it because they argued that it was a health activity and therefore it should be funded by health I sought funding from the relevant individual within the then defense Health Organization and was told that injuries primarily are an army problem not a defense problem the commission heard how important it is for personnel to report their injuries to enable early intervention in order to seek better recovery outcomes frustratingly we also heard about some cases where members injuries have not been recorded by defense making the process of claiming benefits and pensions through DVA particularly difficult we heard that attempts by clearance divers to offer their expertise and advice the Navy leadership on matters involving safety and the mental health and well-being of them and their peers were rebuffed as were the Navy clearance divers trusts attempts to bring critical issues to the Navy's attention following three deaths by Suicide within its ranks in a couple of years the trust's efforts to survey the clearance diver cohort to identify serious problems and recommend Solutions and share its findings with navy were impressive this work comprised input from Edith Cowan University a number of senior barristers and most importantly people with lived experience it should have been a call to immediate action instead we heard that the then chief of Navy's response was to dismiss the effort as it did not strictly follow the rules for research in the ADF it demonstrated failed criticism of those who sought to help this response is as damning as it is sad I can advise that the commission has reached out to the Navy clearance divers trust in the last week to check whether they have had any follow-up from the Navy in light of the evidence presented over the course of the last two hearings there has been eye contact from Navy only silence that is disappointing we heard from Professor Sharon Parker an associate professor Karina jurispa about smart work work that is stimulating offers Mastery and autonomy and that is relational and tolerable we heard how work redesigned should ideally engage workers to achieve best results that's not what Navy demonstrated in its response to the efforts of the Navy clearance divers Trust we also heard from associate professor Jacqueline drew our defense has a moral responsibility to create a workplace that does not does no harm but this requires multi-level leadership across the agency which defense needs to make a priority associate professor Drew commented that leaders must value Workers Health demonstrate awareness of impact of workplace and model behaviors and actions required retired Major General Peter Dunn IO spoke with authority about leadership in different contexts and noted that leaders must also communicate effectively and deliver consistent messaging across the entire organization it's his opinion that suicide in the defense and Veteran Community is a current crisis that requires leadership from the top as a priority as I mentioned earlier this hearing has also examined the issues affecting families or serving personnel and the systems and programs in place to help support them we know when families are well supported and their needs prioritized the serving member is better able to perform their duties and more likely to stay in the military during a panel on Family Support last Friday commissioner Brown expressed their frustration at the amount of work defense still needs to do in this vital area particularly around Child Care domestic and Family Violence improve communication and the need for better data connection collection the supporting service families report written by Sue Hamilton in 1986 identified many of these same issues and here we are 37 years later and we've heard that many defense families are still doing it tough we've heard repeatedly from ministers and service Chiefs particularly in light of the defense strategic review about defenseless people being its greatest asset one wonders then one more has not been done to address the cultural and systemic challenges our service men and women face at every stage of their military career asked by Council assisting the comment on the Navy's commitment to putting its people first clearance diver Michael Maley CSC near Sam who had a distinguished 38-year career in the Navy told this commission and I quote look that sounds really nice as a motto but in my experience it's far from the truth the common way that I explain it is and that many other people within defense I've had experience with all three services and all of the ranks that you are simply a number and you will be replaced very quickly that's a couple of drivert it's becoming increasingly apparent that if defense does not shift to a People's First culture it will never meet its Target of growing its Workforce by approximately 30 percent to close to 80 000 Personnel by 2040. the defense to reach those targets it must prioritize the mental health and well-being of those who serve during her evidence last Wednesday Professor Sharon Parker said and I quote creating positive healthy work is not just going to be good for mental health and well-being but it's also actually going to be positive for the business and that really is what this Royal commission is hoping to help achieve our end goal is to help improve the health and well-being of serving and ex-serving members we strongly believe this will strengthen the ADF not just its capability to protect protect Australia's national interests but to attract and retain the right people over the last couple of days we've again focused our attention on what the Department of Veterans Affairs is doing to better support those who served or have have served or are serving we're well aware of the significant challenges veterans and their families continue to face when trying to access entitlements as well as much needed Support Services through the Department of Veteran Affairs we note the positive impact of our interim report last August has already had particularly in relation to the moves by government the harmonize complex legislation governing veterans compensation and providing the DVA additional resourcing to clear the backlog of unprocessed claims as we heard from secretary frame earlier today we heard today from the secretary of the dvas I mentioned Alison fraim about the steps taken in this space however we commend these steps but we also know there is still much more to do what can't be overlooked is that we continue to hear from many veterans about their poor experiences when seeking the support and services they desperately need and deserve we heard from acting deputy secretary Kate Pope PSM who was Deputy president of the repatriation commission the DVA operates under the Mantra that everyone who serves gets the support they need but she later acknowledged that is not yet the reality for a whole lot of people as I mentioned in my opening address there will be no quick fix to these issues of defense and Veteran suicide real and Lasting reform will take time it will also take strong leadership as retired Major General Peter Dunn said in his evidence and I quote if we're going to implement significant change then it has to start right from the top I would have to say included in that are our political leaders and it is imperative that there is bipartisan support for the change we wholeheartedly agree I refer again to the Robert debt roll Commission in his response to the findings the Prime Minister made a commitment to and I quote making sure that it can never happen again and making sure that the government responds in an appropriate ordered and considered way we also note the establishment of a high-level group that will ever see and implement the necessary findings of the robodet royal commission we hope for and expect the same response to our Royal commission there's an old saying that talk is cheap sadly in regards to addressing suicide and suicidality within the defense and Veteran population there has been too much talk and not enough action which has cost and continues to cost many lives our next public hearing hearing block 11 will commence in Melbourne on Monday the 28th of August when we expect to hear evidence relating to the Inspector General of the Australian Defense Force about the transition to civilian life from representatives of of the Victorian government including Premier Daniel Andrews about cooperation between states and Commonwealth on matters related to Veterans and about supports for serving and ex-serving members in Victoria and lived experienced Witnesses who will share their deeply personal stories we can now also announce that the Royal commission will hold a public Hearing in Sydney commencing on Monday the 20th of November 2023 further details will be made available on our website in due course thank you again to everyone who has participated in this hearing and to all of those who have engaged with us here in South Australia for those who are traveling safe travels are now adjourn all rhymes Royal commissioner to defense and Veteran suicide will adjourn to Monday the 28th of August