Hollie Hughes (NSW, Liberal Party, Shadow Assistant Minister for Mental Health and Suicide Prevention) Share this | Link to this | Hansard source

I feel like this could be the claytons valedictory. Welcome to the just-in-case valedictory volume 2. Last night, I recognised some of the people who have played such a vital role over the past six years, and I know there are plenty missing, so I do hope that we come back after the election so I can deliver a real one. But I want to cover off some of the issues that have shaped my time in this place.

I'm reluctant to start with autism, as I could be here for the entire 10 minutes and more, but I do want to say that one of my proudest achievements in this place was the Senate select committee I chaired that covered autism—whole-of-life, not just early intervention and childhood, and not just the vocal late-in-life diagnosed. We looked at profound autism, autism that affects every aspect of life, not just the glossy rubbish of 'autism is a superpower'. Sometimes autism is hard—really hard. It's hard for the autistic person, their family and their community. It affects access to the health system, the education system and employment and interactions with the justice system. Mental health issues are dismissed as just part of the autism.

Our first recommendation was the establishment of a National Autism Strategy. It's happened, even if it took two years for this government to produce a reasonably poor summation of the 81 recommendations that my committee made. It now has some funding to be rolled out. Not being part of the government, I would have hoped this would have been an area where bipartisan consultation would have occurred, but, alas, I am as in the dark as the rest of the community as to what this actually looks like.

To all the families who have children diagnosed with classical autism, profound autism—those before the new and, quite frankly, stupid DSM-5, which bundles our kids in with children experiencing minor developmental delays—I see you. Whilst I'll no longer be in this place to fight for our kids, know that whilst I continue my son's journey, along with my wonderful friend Nicole Rogerson, the total rock star who started Autism Awareness Australia—the epitome of the autism mum—we will still fight for all our kids. Those who try and make decisions that hurt our kids and our families can very much take this as a warning.

I spoke yesterday, and have spoken on many occasions, about the NDIS. Again, I could go on for days. But I beg of you, in this place and the other: please put your big boy or big girl pants on and make the tough decisions needed to make this sustainable. Make the big reforms. Cut the numbers through ensuring this scheme is fit for purpose. If one in 37 people in this country have a significant, permanent and lifelong disability, we are in for a world of pain. Get the numbers back down. Define 'permanent', 'significant' and 'lifelong'. Provide other lifeboats for families needing some early intervention. Embrace the insurance part of the scheme; invest early to see improved life outcomes. Don't punish families who use supports correctly and reach goals but are petrified to share their successes because they know that they'll be punished, while those who waste funds are rewarded for not using them appropriately. Use data properly for every participant, especially early intervention.

But, in working towards goals, we hear about provider registration. It's about process at the moment, not quality. Some of the highest quality providers are sole providers, who work most closely with families. Introduce a scalable registration process, in line with business size, number of participants or volume of billing. Remove some of the excess levels within and outside the agency. Stop the bureaucracy from dominating, and focus on funding supports. Stop the insane external legal bills to not only fight but break participants and their families, only to then, in the overwhelming majority of cases, give them what they originally wanted on the steps of the tribunal. I will stay on this from outside of this place, but I am not filled with confidence that the third largest item in the budget will get the attention it deserves, because, unfortunately, it's not seen as being as sexy or important as focusing your career here on defence or finance.

Somehow or other, along this crazy journey, I became a bit of a vaping queen. It's still beyond me that this policy stupidity of banning vapes continues. Tax them; regulate them. We have the model with cigarettes and alcohol. Instead we see firebombing of stores and organised crime. We see that it is more lucrative for criminal networks to bring in containers of illicit tobacco and vapes than heroin, with much less threat of punishment or penalty. Moral policing has led to policy insanity, with ministers led by the nose by an overzealous health department who rely on the so-called research of discredited and biased so-called academics. I do hope the new policy of a Dutton government will see the end of the criminalisation of smoking cessation. We are certainly not seeing that from this government.

I have also had the privilege of working in the mental health portfolio. Whilst I could talk about prevention and early intervention, I really want to say this to the families of loved ones experiencing serious mental illness: the system is letting you down. And, whilst it's true that many of these people are more likely to be victims of crime, I also want to acknowledge the pain of the families left behind when their loved ones become victims of those with mental illness. As many of you are aware, the daughter of my dearest friend, Julie Singleton, was murdered at Bondi Junction last year. It will never be over for Julie or for Dawnie's siblings, yet the mental health system has let them down and we now face the prospect of a coronial inquiry seemingly intent on releasing publicly the footage of what occurred. This is not in the public interest. This is not to benefit the families who lost loved ones. It is insulting to those who lost their lives. It is insulting to those who were there, some of whom were attacked and survived and who've decided to remain anonymous. They could lose that anonymity. This is trauma porn, and, whilst it's a state government issue, we need to show leadership here. Attorneys-general need to unify and stop this further traumatisation of families that is just so the evening news has shock-value footage. I would like to say that I hope none of you or your families ever experience this kind of pain. I wasn't really going to make much of a personal comment here, but I experienced people who ran against me for preselection, and their supporters, using against me my lack of a direct phone call to them in the weeks following this tragedy whilst I worked to support my friend. To all of you that did that: you are a disgrace; you have disgraced yourselves. To those grubs: I hope it was worth it for you.

I'd also like to look at antisemitism and the total lack of leadership that we're seeing from this government. I'd like to pay tribute to the strength of the Australian Jewish community and the incredible work exposing so much of this by my friend Sharri Markson. You're an absolute legend, Shar. I got to see my friend Amir Maimon today, the Israeli ambassador. To you, I say: you have many friends who will always stand with Israel and who will always stand with our Jewish friends. We have the most incredible Australian Jews, and I must acknowledge Solomon Lew, who has perhaps given me the most profound advice as I've prepared for my departure from this place: sometimes second prize is actually first prize. Sol, you are so right. I look forward to many more dinners as I navigate my next steps, but I know that the support I have received from the Jewish community I will pay back tenfold, even after my departure. To Joel Burnie, Colin Rubenstein and Tammy Reznik: I was always a Zionist, but you showed me Israel, and it will be an experience I will always treasure and hope to return to very, very soon.

I know yesterday we did 'NDIS Monday' on Tuesday, and we've seen the demise of 'transmission Tuesday'. I hope that, whatever we see in the next term of government, we see some openness and some honesty about the true cost of the race to renewables for every Australian and the damage that it is doing to our rural and regional communities, who are forced to bear the brunt of much of this infrastructure.

I'll finish on one of the most interesting inquiries that I have had the pleasure of recently participating in. It was one initiated by the Greens on menopause and perimenopause. To all the women of my age: have a look at it. I know Senator Waters was disappointed, as she wanted to see menopause leave supported—which it was not, by anyone, except by the unions—but it has highlighted the need for us to all talk about perimenopause and menopause and to acknowledge that 50 per cent of the population are going to go through this, that the symptoms are complex and that support for women is required. Women aged 50 and above—or sometimes a little younger, as we know—are quite often at their most productive. Their children are grown and they have much career experience. It is the time that we should be supporting women, and I have embraced that in my final few months in this place because every now and then the temperature in here is really unbearable—so, very often now, I remove my jacket as a little bit of an acknowledgement that we need to be more open and accessible to all.

Andrew McLachlan (SA, Deputy-President) Share this | Link to this | Hansard source

Thank you for your service to the Senate.