Cathy O'Toole (Herbert, Australian Labor Party) Share this | Hansard source

I have worked extensively in the mental health community sector for more than 15 years. As the former CEO of one of the largest mental health community organisations in North Queensland, I am very well aware of the issues faced by veterans, ex-service personnel and their families. As the newly elected member for Herbert—which contains the largest garrison city in Australia, Townsville, which is home to veterans, ex-service personnel and their families—I am passionate about standing up for veterans, ex-service personnel and their families on this very important issue of suicide prevention. They deserve no less than the strongest advocacy in this place.

Minister, I would like to draw your attention to the fact that on 11 August 2016 the Prime Minister announced a veterans' suicide prevention trial for Townsville. As the Department of Veterans' Affairs does not keep the official numbers or names of all the veterans, there are many veterans and ex-service personnel who are falling through the cracks. It is essential that these men and women have access to the suicide prevention trial in Townsville. But we need to have accurate data and modelling occur to ensure that all veterans are included. Minister, are there any plans to identify those veterans who are not registered with the DVA to address this huge gap?

In December 2016 the minister, along with the previous minister for health, the Honourable Sussan Ley, held a suicide prevention round table in Townsville. The feedback from veterans is that it was very much a tick and flick exercise. The minister's media statement released on 30 November 2016 stated: 'Minister Ley and I will be holding a round table with local stakeholders in Townsville to discuss this issue and hear ideas that will help shape the new landmark suicide prevention trial in the region.' Minister, what has been done with the information gathered from the Townsville round table? Will a report be released and, if so, will it be made public? How has the information received from that round table being shared and used to shape the trial? Has anything been done with that information?

Minister, I want to take you through everything that has occurred on the ground since the government announcement on 11 August 2016, which was more than 10 months ago. All of these steps have occurred without any assistance, direction or funding from the Turnbull government. In August 2016, I formed the Townsville Community Defence Reference Group, which includes local veterans, ex-service personnel, family representatives, health professionals and the PHM. The group was formed to ensure that local veterans had a strong voice in a program which directly affects them, and we meet on a regular basis. After several months of waiting for terms of reference, or any direction from the government, the reference group took the following action. It formed a steering committee, voted for the chair of the steering committee, drafted the terms of reference for the steering committee, drafted the job description for the project officer, formed an interview panel for the project officer interview process—and the PHM was directly involved in all of this process. The PHN advertised the project officer position, and the project officer has been employed by the PHN and has been working for over a month—and all of this activity has been paid for by the PHM. To reiterate the last point and make it very clear: not one cent of the $3 million that was allocated by the Turnbull government has been given to the PHN in Townsville. The PHN are clearly committed to this trial and as such have made funds available to get the trial underway.

My question to the minister is: why hasn't the funding been immediately released and will the minister be reimbursing the PHN for the costs they have accrued so far? No funding has been given to the PHN in what will soon be the first year of a three-year trial. Does that mean that the Townsville veterans will have a three-year trial that will actually be funded for only two years? The PHN is able to write business cases to roll over unspent funds for all portfolios except for the mental health portfolio. Why can't the mental health portfolio do this, especially given that this includes the veteran suicide prevention trial funding? Given that the first year of the suicide prevention trial received no funding, will the minister extend the trial to ensure that it runs for the full three years as promised? How will you do this, Minister, given the fact that mental health cannot apply to rollover funds? Has the schedule for the suicide prevention trial been done? Have targets been determined and agreed? Have the parameters of the work to be carried out been determined? Have the terms of reference from the project been done?

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