Herbert MP Phillip Thompson responds to Royal Commission Report into veteran and ADF suicides

“To the families – mothers, fathers, brothers, sisters, children – and the mates who have had to bury their friends and loved ones, I say sorry”: Federal MP speaks out over veteran suicides probe.

Infantry veteran and federal politician Phillip Thompson says “we can and must do more” to stop veteran and Defence Force suicides in the wake of a damning Royal Commission report into the plight facing Australia’s troops.

As the Herbert MP considered the 122 recommendations of the final report on Monday, he reflected on the numerous friends and soldiers who served alongside him who endured a “very dark and terrible place after war”.

“There is an extremely long list of very specific recommendations, many of which tell us what we already knew, but the ADF, Veterans Affairs and consecutive governments didn’t do anything about,” Mr Thompson said.

“That inaction must stop now.”

The findings have been described as a “sobering read” by a lawyer who said the Australian Defence Force can longer assume its somebody else’s problem.

Herbert MP Phillip Thompson holds the findings of a Royal Commission Report which he pushed for since his first opportunity to speak to the parliament in 2019. He said many of the 122 recommendations reflect what was already known. Picture: Supplied. .

Mr Thompson, who was injured by an explosive device while on patrol serving in Afghanistan, used his first opportunity when speaking in parliament five years ago to address the issue which he believed was overlooked.

“That’s why I pushed for this Royal Commission, because I had buried too many of my mates, mothers had buried too many of their sons, wives had buried too many of their husbands and fathers, and a nation has buried too many of its veterans,” Mr Thompson said.

“We needed something that would shine a light into the darkest corners of Defence and DVA, and that’s what we got yesterday.”

Deputy Prime Minister and Minister for Defence, Richard Marles delivers the Royal Commission into Defence and Veterans Suicide report in the House of Reps at Parliament House in Canberra. Picture: NewsWire / Martin Ollman

Mr Thompson recognised the bravery of numerous witnesses during the commission who had to relive their traumatic experiences.

“We owe it to them, and the legacy of their loved ones who made the ultimate sacrifice for our nation, to act quickly on the recommendations of this report,” he said.

“I commit to working with this and any future governments to making drastic changes to Defence and DVA that will prevent further suicides.

“To the families – mothers, fathers, brothers, sisters, children – and the mates who have had to bury their friends and loved ones, I say sorry.

“We have lost too many of our nation’s bravest, and it must stop.

“We must do better.”

Originally published as Herbert MP Phillip Thompson responds to Royal Commission Report into veteran and ADF suicides