The Royal Commission into Defence and Veteran Suicide concluded with the delivery of its Final Report on 9 September 2024. All enquiries should now be directed to the Attorney-General's Department. See the contact page for more information.

For information about Defence and veteran support services, please see our crisis support information.

Update on the Royal Commission’s special report on a proposed new entity

The Royal Commission into Defence and Veteran Suicide had planned to deliver a special report to the Governor-General in June 2024, detailing a proposal for a new entity to follow the Royal Commission.

This new entity would provide independent oversight - including monitoring the implementation of the Royal Commission’s recommendations - and help ensure that the prevention of Defence and veteran suicide and suicidality is a paramount consideration for Government and relevant agencies.

The Royal Commission had planned to deliver this recommendation in advance of the Final Report, in recognition of the urgency of addressing the national crisis of Defence and veteran suicide.

However, the Royal Commission has decided to delay delivery of the special report to allow the Commonwealth appropriate time to respond to matters arising during procedural fairness processes. As such, the recommendation for establishing a new entity will instead be included as part of the Final Report, to be delivered to the Governor-General on 9 September this year.

The new entity will be the centrepiece of our recommendations and, if the Government supports its establishment, it will create greater oversight and accountability for suicide prevention, and begin to restore trust in the systems that have failed serving and ex-serving ADF personnel and their families.