Zev Ben-Avi

Advocate

Vietnam Veterans Motorcycle Club

4 Brooker St

Woodford Qld 4514

07 5496 3444

linkezev@caliph.net.au

3 May 2001

Bruce Scott MP

Minister for Veterans' Affairs

Parliament House

Canberra ACT 2600

G'day,

I refer to the meeting I had with yourself and your staff on 6 April 2001 at DVA Brisbane. At that meeting I addressed several issues to you and your staff. One of those issues was that of "unanswered mail". Your (undated letter to me of approximately 30 March-3 April) addressed this issue and I was told at the meeting that there was NO outstanding mail due to me from your office. I queried this statement with Paul Evans, your Adviser, showing him the letter from me to you dated 28 Feb 2001 which was a cover letter that accompanied another letter addresed to my MP (Longman- Mal Brough).

In the letter to you (of 28 Feb) I asked specifically for a response to points 3; 4; 5; and 6 as they were detailed in the letter to Brough. When I showed my file copy to Paul Evans, he read both letters, copied both and stated that a reply would be forthcoming despite the fact that the reply was already 8 days past the 28 day Service Charter requirement from DVA.

It is now another 28 days since the meeting and still no reply. Let me once again quote the DVA Service Charter as applicable to mail response -

1998 copyright version - "When you write to us, we will: answer or acknowledge your letter within 28 days; answer fully the questions or issues you raise."

2000 copyright version - "When you contact us by phone or in writing we will: aim to answer or acknowledge your letter within 28 days; acknowledge your e-mail promptly."

So that I do not inconvenience your staff overly, let me quote from that letter to Brough and the points which I asked you to comment on.

"..."USER PAYS" Government has used this frequently as a "mantra" to foist costs back onto John and Joanne Citizen.

"MUTUAL OBLIGATION" As far as veterans of this country are concerned, the "obligation" is certainly "mutual" except that we veterans are the people who are owed the "obligation" under the "user pays" principal. Our bodies and minds were borrowed, under contract, to do a dirty job for the government of the day. Our bodies and minds were not returned to us in the same good order that they were in when they were "borrowed". The "compensation" that we veterans get in return is NOT up to scratch and it is time that government recognised that "USER PAYS" works two ways.

"ENTERPRISE BARGAINING" In the industrial relations field we are constantly reminded that "enterprise bargaining" is the preferred mode. When it comes to veterans trying to do some "enterprise bargaining", we are told to have our peak bodies, ie VVAA; RSL; TPI Assoc;, do the bargaining on our collective behalf. As one of the instigators of the TPI Campaign, I was told by the Minister's Office (DVA) in a letter dated 17 July 2000, that if I wished to be included on the "task force" to the Repat. Comm. on the TPI issue, that I would have to be a delegate of one of the peak bodies - named as - RSL; AVDSC; VVAA; VVF; and TPI Fed. The quote from the Minister's Office is -'...if you wish to be included in the meetings, that would have to be through one of the organisations involved.' This would be a bit difficult as I am not a member of any of those named organisations, a fact which the minister knows. I am however the Advocate of the VVMC, one of the two bodies that initially started the TPI Campaign, but we (the VVMC) don't get a look in. The point here is that in the TPI Campaign, "Enterprise Bargaining" is not allowed.

"COLLECTIVE BARGAINING" This has been discouraged in industrial relations under the current government, yet conversely is the only accepted method allowed in the TPI Campaign.

Please respond in full from your own office, do NOT pass the buck to another minister, the following points.

1. ...

2. ...

3. What happened to "user pays" when applied to veterans ?

4. Why has "mutual obligation" not applied to veterans compensation ?

5. Why are veterans forced to endure the "divide and conquer" method of collective bargaining versus enterprise bargaining ?

6. Why is government quibbling over a MTAWE benchmark for TPI's when the fuel excise "take" is $16 billion ? "

That is a partial quote from the 28 Feb letter to Brough which he also has NOT answered despite phone calls and meetings with him and his staff.

In the covering letter to you also of 28 Feb I asked - "I would appreciate a response from you within at least 28 days on points 3; 4; 5; and 6 in that letter. A response that is all beer and no froth would be the least that I would expect." I not only got NO BEER, I also got NO FROTH !!!!!!!!!!!!!

I brought this letter up at the meeting of 6 April 2001, gave a copy of it to Paul Evans and a second lot of 28 days has now passed and still NO RESPONSE let alone a meaningful answer as per the Service Charter.

Your current Service Charter states - "...we will: acknowledge your e-mail promptly."

I will expect a full and meaningful answer by next Monday, 7 May 2001.

You remain sir, my humble and obedient servant,

Zev Ben-Avi