Julie Collins (Franklin, Australian Labor Party, Shadow Minister for Regional Development and Local Government) Share this | Hansard source

I move:

That this House:

(1) recognises that:

(a) World Mental Health Day (WMHD) will take place on 10 October; and

(b) Mental Health Week will take place in Australia from 9 to 15 October;

(2) seeks to encourage help-seeking behaviour, reduce the stigma associated with mental issues and foster connections through communities;

(3) acknowledges the importance of WMHD and other campaigns including R U OK? Day in Australia, and World Suicide Prevention Day that help:

(a) build community awareness about mental health issues and around suicide prevention; and

(b) to encourage people to have regular and meaningful conversations with family, friends and colleagues;

(4) recognises the efforts of dedicated individuals and organisations working to address mental health issues and suicide prevention;

(5) notes with concern that suicide rates remain unacceptably too high—in Australia:

(a) suicide is the leading cause of death for men and women between the ages of 15 and 44;

(b) each day seven people die by suicide, and 30 attempt it;

(c) higher rates of suicide exist among vulnerable groups including Aboriginal and Torres Strait Islander peoples, young people and people from lesbian, gay, bisexual, transgender and intersex communities;

(d) the annual number of deaths by suicide is around 2,500;

(e) each year it is estimated that 65,000 people attempt suicide; and

(f) the annual suicide toll is now twice the annual road toll; and

(6) calls on the Government to show leadership around suicide prevention, including working in a bipartisan approach to adopt the National Mental Health Commission's target to reduce suicide by 50 per cent over the next 10 years.

This motion acknowledges that today is World Mental Health Day, an important day globally for mental health education, for awareness and for advocacy. This year's theme focuses on psychological and mental health first aid. The day is supported by the United Nations and more than a hundred countries around the world and, of course, this is Mental Health Week, and Mental Health Day coincides with that. This week seeks to encourage help-seeking behaviour, to reduce the stigma associated with mental illness and to foster connection through communities.

I was pleased to hear the Minister for Health talking about World Mental Health Day in the House today, because we know that here in Australia the rates of mental illness are very concerning. It is estimated that more than 3.6 million Australians aged 16 to 85 are living with or have experienced mental health problems. In addition to this, around 600,000 children and young people between the ages of four and 17 have been affected by a clinically significant mental health problem. There are more than three million Australians with moderate to mild mental health problems—that is, mostly anxiety and depression—over 600,000 Australians who are experiencing severe episodic and severe and persistent ill health and 65,000 Australians with severe and persistent complex mental health issues.

Slowly but surely we are starting to reduce the stigma associated with mental illness, and here in Australia, I am told by experts in the field, we are doing quite well in terms of raising awareness and reducing stigma compared with other Western countries. As a community we are talking more about our mental health, and that is a good thing. Dedicated awareness programs and dedicated days are ways of helping that. They make us more aware of those around us, our community, our family and our friends and make sure that we take the time to talk to people that we think may be dealing with and living with a mental illness. This day has encouraged people to have regular and meaningful conversations with their family, friends and colleagues. It is also about reconnecting with people you have lost touch with. World Suicide Prevention Day is also another reminder, and that day was held on 10 September as it is each year.

Globally, the World Health Organization estimates that around 800,000 people die by suicide each year. I raise that today because just last week the ABS released some new statistics in relation to suicide in Australia that are very concerning indeed. Suicide is again the leading cause of death in Australia for those aged 15 to 44. According to the ABS, over 3,027 Australians died by suicide in 2015. That is an increase of 5.4 per cent on the previous year. It is, of course, 3,027 too many. It is more than double the annual road toll. According to this latest data, it is estimated that more than 65,000 Australians attempt suicide each year. Sadly, suicide continues to disproportionately impact Indigenous communities, with Aboriginal and Torres Strait Islander people twice more likely than non-Indigenous people in Australia to die by suicide. This is heartbreaking indeed and should cause all of us concern.

Labor knows that suicide affects far too many Australians and that all levels of government should be working together to focus on a holistic approach to suicide prevention. It is only by working together that we can finally reduce the impact of suicide in our society. A lot of great work has already been done, and I want to thank those working in the sector, community mental health, mental health experts and primary health practitioners, people out there who are supporting people in our community who need that support to get the assistance that they need. We continue to be inspired by some of those individuals and organisations working to address suicide and to improve mental health in our community. But there is still more to do.

I have to say I am still very disappointed that the government has not accepted the National Mental Health Commission's recommendation to adopt a suicide prevention target—something that Labor did. Prior to the election campaign, we accepted the recommendation that there should be a target, and we said that that target should be a reduction of 50 per cent over 10 years and that we should measure the implementation of the programs and the expenditure of funds that we are putting into suicide prevention in our community. It is too important not to, when the figures that come out are so disturbing and so large. We need to work together, and, if we do not have a target and we are not measuring progress when it comes to improving mental health in our community, how do we know we are making a difference? How do we know the investments that governments of all levels are making are actually changing things in our local community? It is too important, on this important day, not to act.

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