Bernie Geary Vic children's commissioner TROUBLED children in state care should be treated like returned soldiers and given a "gold card" for health and education, Victoria's new independent Commissioner for Children and Young People says. Bernie Geary will step into the newly created role, which empowers him to initiate his own inquiries and report directly to parliament for the first time. The role replaces his previous position of Child Safety Commissioner, in which he operated at the direction of the relevant minister. Mr Geary said improving inter-agency cooperation, ensuring children are not shuffled around in out-of-home care, and the health of vulnerable children were immediate priorities. These children should be like returned soldiers. They should have a gold card that gets them through the (health and education) system, because they are in the system through no fault of their own, and they struggle," he told reporters in Melbourne. Mr Geary said the move to have an independent agency to protect the interests of the state's most vulnerable children finally puts Victoria on a level pegging with the other states around Australia. He said his previous role as Child Safety Commissioner, which he filled for eight years, was restrictive. "It was strained to a degree, I had no own-motion capacity and conducted investigations and reviews at the whim of ministers," he said. Community Services Minister Mary Wooldridge said Mr Geary would have greatly expanded powers in the new role. "In his new role he will have the power to initiate and conduct inquiries very broadly for child protection clients, for youth justice clients, for young people under 21 who are leaving or have left state care to live independently," Ms Wooldridge said. The minister said Mr Geary would also be able to undertake systematic reviews of Victoria's health and human services departments. Mr Geary was Victoria's first outreach worker and has worked with vulnerable children for more than 30 years.