FOI 500/23/24
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OFFICIAL: Sensitive
AFGHANISTAN INQUIRY IMPLEMENTATION OVERSIGHT PANEL
(O)
REPORT NUMBER 12: QUARTERLY REPORT TO THE MINISTER FOR DEFENCE
August 2023 – October 2023
(O) Table of Contents
1.
Key Points ............................................................................................................................. 1
2.
Background .......................................................................................................................... 2
3.
Confidential interviews with SOCOMD external stakeholders ................................................. 2
4.
Visits to 2 Commando Regiment and Special Air Service Regiment ......................................... 2
5.
Support to Veterans affected by OSI Investigations, and related matters ................................ 3
6.
Meeting with Australian Defence College .............................................................................. 4
7.
Meetings with Defence People Group.................................................................................... 4
8.
Compensation ...................................................................................................................... 5
9.
Engagement with Stakeholders ............................................................................................. 5
10. Future Reports ...................................................................................................................... 6
1.
Key Points
(O:S) Feedback obtained in the Panel’s second series of confidential interviews on how cultural
change across SOCOMD was being experienced by its external partners was generally positive.
(O:S) The Panel visited 2 Commando Regiment and Special Air Service Regiment. s45
the Panel retains some reservations about this relationship. s33(a)(ii)
(O) Engagement with Department of Veterans’ Affairs officials confirmed that they are giving
ongoing and active considerations to the needs of persons affected by the Afghanistan Inquiry,
and their families, and are in regular contact with Defence to understand when attention to
particular cohorts or individuals may be needed.
(O:S) The Panel believes opportunity remains for s47C
(O) The Panel is satisfied with Defence’s progress in the following initiatives:
o
Mitigation Strategies for Exceptionalism
o
Research into Operational Incentives
o
Defence Culture Blueprint.
(O:S) The Panel supports the approach to compensation as currently proposed by Defence.
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(O:S) s33(a)(ii)
we are concerned that the recent lessons learned about the overuse of
SASR are remembered.
5.
Support to Veterans affected by OSI Investigations, and related matters
(O) Following from the Panel’s meeting with the Department of Veterans’ Affairs (DVA’s) First
Assistant Secretary, Mental Health and Well Being Service on 14 July 2023 (reported in our previous
quarterly report), the Panel engaged in more depth with staff across DVA in relation to paragraph 15(c)
of the Panel’s Terms of Reference on:
Whether appropriate welfare … support is being provided to persons affected
by the Inquiry; including consideration of the support and services provided
by the ex-service organisations and how these are complementary to, and
integrated with, the services provided by both Defence and the Department
of Veterans’ Affairs.
(O) The Panel subsequently met with:
The National Manager, Open Arms on 3 August 2023
A/Assistant Secretary Benefits Policy on 4 August 2023, and
DVA Deputy Commissioner Western Australia and team members from the Perth area on
28 September 2023.
(O) These meetings reinforced that DVA is giving ongoing and active considerations to the needs of
persons affected by Inquiry, and their families, and are in regular contact with Defence to understand
when attention to particular cohorts or individuals may be needed.
(O) While in Perth, Dr Thom had the opportunity to spend time with DVA staff on the ground who
interact with members and ex-members of SASR most often, including members of:
Open Arms client support and lived experience officers
the veterans support officer team who attend Campbell Barracks, and
the coordinator client support team.
(O) They confirmed local arrangements that are in place for DVA participation in Campbell Barracks
welfare boards, when invited, and how they engage with ADF members in WA who are medically or
administratively discharged to assist their transition from service. The Coordinator Client Support team
also confirmed arrangements to assist with issues such as use of crisis accommodation program,
financial counselling, application for a DVA white card, and addressing problems particular to each
member that relate to their geographic location (noting this is particularly relevant to remote WA
regions if members move there after separation from service).
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(O) The Panel appreciated these comprehensive and helpful briefings.
6.
Meeting with Australian Defence College
(O) During this quarter, the Australian Defence College provided the Panel with a final draft of ADF
Command Doctrine, and met with the Panel to brief on the full range of social mastery reform
initiatives being implemented under their leadership, including:
‘Train the trainer’ activities to assist training schools to best deliver content from the Ethics
Doctrine
Delivering a quarterly Military Philosophy Roundtable, in collaboration with the Cranlana Centre
for Ethical Leadership, as Defence’s flagship ethics education program
Developing accessible ethics content and educational resources for individual and unit-led
learning including an online ‘Introduction to Military Ethics’ program
Publishing ADF-P-0 Military Character and establishing a Community of Practice
Recording and on-line publishing of Character Vignettes
Finalising the draft ‘Character’ training and education continuum
Progress towards publishing the social mastery vignettes series (to fulfil a recommendation in
the IGADF Afghanistan Inquiry Report)
Development of a principles-based framework to guide the selection of all Command
appointments
s47C
Progress at the Centre for Defence Leadership and Ethics (CDLE) to implement a quality
assurance framework that provides ongoing measurement, evaluation and sustainment of
Defence social mastery.
(O) The Panel considers that CDLE has led a full program of work across the last three years to ensure
the ADF’s doctrine, practices and teaching of ethics, leadership, command and culture represent best
practice. It is our view that this work should collectively protect the ADF against the risk that events
such as those described in the IGADF Afghanistan Inquiry Report may recur; and individually protect
ADF members against the risk of moral injury. However, we note the need for properly resourced
ongoing assurance that training across all services is aligned to ADF doctrine.
(O) The Panel believes opportunity remains for s47C
7.
Meetings with Defence People Group
(O) On 11 August 2023, the Panel met with Head People Capability (now Head of Military Personnel) to
be briefed on two reform initiatives:
Mitigation Strategies for Exceptionalism and
Research into
Operational Incentives.
(O) The Panel is satisfied that the complex interactions between the benefits and risks of incentives to
deploy (embedded in ADF salary, allowances, honours and awards and policy structures) are now being
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suitably explored. This initiative will be concluded after the Panel’s tenure has ended, so we will be
unable to comment on its final outcomes; however, we consider that the endorsed project plan is a
strong indication of Defence seeking to better align its incentive structures with the life-time wellbeing
of members in mind.
(O) Similarly, although the work on mitigation strategies for exceptionalism will not be completed
while the Panel is in place, we are satisfied that progress to date indicates Defence has targeted the
right areas on which to focus its efforts and embed lessons learnt to prevent recurrence.
(O) On 22 September 2023, the Panel was also briefed on progress in the Defence Culture Blueprint
program over the past year, and its intended program approach going forward. The Panel was
impressed by the comprehensive nature of this initiative but questioned how Defence will ensure that
it will endure given likely changes in personnel in the future.
8.
Compensation
(O:S) The Panel had visibility of the advice provided to you in June 2023 through s47C
(classified above the level of this report).
(O:S) s47C
This was one of the matters raised with the Secretary and Associate Secretary in our meeting on
22 August 2023. s47C
(O) The Panel supports the approach proposed by Defence it understands is currently being
progressed.
9.
Engagement with Stakeholders
(O) The Panel continues to meet with as many current and former Defence personnel, external
government agencies and non-government stakeholders as practicable.
(O) In the period from August to October 2023 the Panel engaged with:
National Manager Open Arms, DVA (3 August 2023)
A/Assistant Secretary Benefits Policy, DVA (4 August 2023)
Head People Capability (11 August 2023)
Secretary and Associate Secretary (22 August 2023)
Australian Defence College (25 August 2023)
Deputy Secretary Strategy, Policy and Industry (25 August 2023)
2 Commando Regiment (29 August 2023)
17 Confidential Interviews with SOCOMD External Stakeholders (4 September to
6 October 2023)
Assistant Secretary, Culture and People Development (22 September 2023)
DVA Deputy Commissioner Western Australia (28 September 2023)
Special Air Service Regiment (28-29 September 2023)
Chief of the Defence Force, Secretary and Chief of Army (5 October 2023)
Special Operations Commander, Australia (9 October 2023), and
Deputy Prime Minister and Minister for Defence (30 October 2023). (
Note to FOI 388 23-24: This
meeting was re-scheduled to
6 Nov 23)
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10. Future Reports
(O) This report is the Panel’s last Quarterly Report.
(O) A Final Report covering observations over our full three years of oversight activity has been
prepared and will be provided to you on 8 November 2023.
A draft of that report was provided to the CDF, Secretary, Chief of Army and Special Operations
Commander, Australia on 20 September 2023; seeking their feedback on factual accuracy,
clarity, sensitivity and classification
The Panel also met with those officials in early October (see previous point) to discuss the draft,
and
Defence has confirmed that there is no information within the report which requires a security
classification. It will therefore be open to you to table that report in the Parliament, at your
discretion, as anticipated in paragraph 22 of the Panel’s Terms of Reference.
Dr Vivienne Thom AM
Lead, Afghanistan Inquiry Implementation Oversight Panel
31 October 2023
Enclosure:
1. (O) Summary of Panel Impressions from Confidential Interviews with SOCOMD External
Stakeholders
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ENCLOSURE 1
AIIOP 12th QUARTERLY REPORT
(O)
Summary of Panel Impressions from Confidential Interviews with SOCOMD External Stakeholders
Overall impressions
(O:S) The feedback provided was positive overall. Stakeholders observed many people had worked hard
over many years to change the Command’s reputation and that is now seeing results.
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Other observations
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