Andrew Wallace (Fisher, Liberal Party) Share this | Hansard source

I move:

That this House:

(1) notes that:

(a) 10 October 2020 was World Mental Health Day;

(b) World Mental Health Day aims to raise awareness of mental health issues worldwide and to encourage action to promote better mental health; and

(c) this year's theme for World Mental Health Day is 'Mental health for all: Greater investment–Greater access. Everyone, everywhere';

(2) further notes that:

(a) 45 per cent of Australians will experience a mental illness in their lifetime;

(b) 3.8 million Australians live with a mental illness while 65 per cent of all GP presentations are for mental health issues;

(c) 54 per cent of people with mental illness do not access any treatment; and

(d) levels of anxiety, social isolation, and emotional distress have increased significantly worldwide during this year's global health emergency;

(3) welcomes the Government's additional investment of more than $500 million in mental health services during the COVID -19 pandemic; and

(4) commends Mental Illness Fellowship Australia for their work supporting the mental health of more than 20,000 Australians each year.

Saturday 10 October was World Mental Health Day. In part due to the local promotion of the event by Mental Illness Fellowship Australia, many thousands of Australians took the opportunity to wear a green ribbon and mark the day with activities all over the country. This has been an incredibly difficult year for a great many of us. However, improving Australia's mental health and wellbeing has in truth been an important challenge now for many, many years. It's estimated that 3.8 million Australians now live with a mental illness and 690,000 live with a severe condition. According to Australian Bureau of Statistics figures, as many as 45 per cent of Australians will develop a mental disorder at some time during their lives. However, though the latest data reveal that 65 per cent of all GP presentations are for mental health issues, only around half of those who experience mental illness will ever seek help. Depression is one of the leading causes of illness and disability among adolescents and adults, while suicide claims the lives of eight Australians every single day—and I want to recognise my close friend and colleague the member for Berowra, who is also the chair of the Parliamentary Friends of Suicide Prevention, who is going to second this motion here today.

In these tough times of stress, anxiety and isolation for many, the statistics will no doubt have only become more serious. The theme for World Mental Health Day this year is 'Greater investment–Greater access. Everyone, everywhere'. Its aim is to see increased investment in mental health worldwide. I'm proud to be part of a government that is delivering just that in Australia. In the recent federal budget, we saw the Australian government again commit to broadening access to mental health support as one of its most important policies. The government committed $5.7 billion for mental health this year, including $100.8 million to double the support available under the Better Access program. Thanks to this government, Australians can now receive 20 Medicare-funded psychological services each year. Already around seven million of these services have been delivered, just since March. The government's recent $115 million extension to the Rural Health Outreach Fund will also see more mental health practitioners able to travel to rural and regional areas to provide access to services where we know they can often be difficult to find. In addition, the government's September announcement of a $2 billion extension of the COVID-19 health response will ensure that telehealth services, particularly in relation to mental health consultations, will be available to people in regional, rural and remote areas until at least the end of March 2021.

We need to see more mental health practitioners to provide comprehensive access for all. So, as part of the government's Job-ready Graduates legislation, it has created the disciplines of professional pathway psychology and professional pathway social work, to reduce the student contribution for studying units as part of a pathway to professional qualifications. This will make it cheaper to study psychology and help more people into a career in this field. These are only the most recent measures in a long track record of commitment to mental health for all Australians, which in my electorate of Fisher has seen the government invest $7½ million into the University of the Sunshine Coast's Mind and Neuroscience—Thompson Institute, $3.2 million in a pilot for a new approach to treating eating disorders and more than $6 million for the construction of Australia's first ever residential facility for those needing help with eating disorders. I congratulate the Minister for Health and the Prime Minister for their personal commitment and their energy in dealing with these important issues.

On the eve of World Mental Health Day this year, with the support of Mental Illness Fellowship Australia, I organised a media conference with my friend Senator Deborah O'Neill of the Labor Party. I want to thank Deb and those opposite for what is a truly bipartisan approach. Australians expect and demand nothing less. That's exactly what we are doing: working together for their benefit on this important issue.

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