Military Rehabilitation and Compensation Amendment (Veterans' Healthcare Without Caps) Bill 2026
Senator CADELL (New South Wales—Nationals Whip in the Senate) (09:21): We've had the announcement this morning that the government will no longer hurt the allied health provisions for our veterans, but it needs to go further. Part of the Military Rehabilitation and Compensation Amendment (Veterans’ Healthcare Without Caps) Bill 2026 is going further. It's about helping them.
Not hurting is not good enough. We have gone through this process. So many people in this room—Senator Lambie; Senator Scarr, who's not here; Senator Shoebridge; and I—heard this when we were in estimates and went down that path.
We knew it was wrong then. It has come to this point two or three months later. It's taken this long.
Veterans have gone through all of this journey, being worried about what would happen. Senator Lambie did a great speech the other day when she said, 'Don't worry. We've got time to fix it.
We're going to get it fixed,' to try and help some of their mental health that was exacerbated. Their problems were exacerbated even by saying this was going to happen. We've got a backdown.
We don't know how solid that will be. We don't know if the increasing in fees that was part of this will be there. We don't know the help—the things that have to happen to help veterans.
We don't know what form this backdown takes. That's why passing this bill is important. We need to solidify and concrete these aids.
We need to get on the record that we value the service of our veterans. We value the vow they made to defend our country, and we will not change our word. We will not go back on our deal.
We will support them in black and white. This is what we'll do—not words, actions. That is why we hijacked—let's be honest; this Senate hijacked—the statute bill.
We had to. We had to have something they had to consider over there. We had to have something they needed to pass to get this through.
This is not a victory for the Senate. It's not a victory for most people. It's a victory for the veterans.
It is for Dr Tim Nelson. It is for Ruth Rogers in Singleton. It is for James Burns in Scone.
It is for Phil Thompson. It is for Senator Lambie. It is a victory for the people that honoured their word to defend Australia while we decided to revoke ours.
We can't celebrate this backdown. We should commiserate that it ever had to get to this. We should question a government that decides a saving is more important than our veterans.
We should be saying, 'How is this a thing?' When we saw these people, as Senator Cash said, laying down their medals, when we saw them coming in trying to meet people and get their—'I needed a cup of tea with a Governor-General.' Having a cuppa with the Governor-General is more important than honouring the people you're meant to represent in the cabinet. We've got the announcement.
It's time for action. This bill is the action we need to codify what we expect, to codify the changes and to make sure this cap is not just gone but dead, buried, cremated and then distributed to the far corners of the Earth. Anything short of that can be turned around tomorrow. 'Let's just change it tomorrow.' That is why we brought it in here today.
We're going to have a long, big, deep dive into how this has failed, because there are so many failures. A friend of mine sent an email the other day. They've got medallic recognition for something.
They can purchase their own medal if they want to wear it. I always thought the first medals were free and replacements cost money. But, no, they can purchase their medallic recognition.
We've heard about the other failures. So well done to the veterans out there. Well done for standing up.
You shouldn't have to fight your own government simply for volunteering to potentially fight our enemies. That is the sickness of where this has come to. And, if there's one thing this government has shown to every other group out there, it's to get angry and get vocal.
We know their answers on just about everything aren't working. On just about everything—they'll pass some legislation; they'll move some stuff—they aren't working. They're not doing what they want them to do.
You have to get vocal, you have to get angry, you have to stand up and you have to put the government in a position where they have to do something they don't want to do and where, though they don't want to do the right thing, they have to do the right thing. Well done, veterans. Once again, we value you.
Congratulations on your victory. We will support this bill. You need more victories like this.