Tom Venning (Grey, Liberal Party) Share this | Hansard source

I'd like to acknowledge the member for Bowman, Henry Pike, for bringing this important matter to this chamber. I'd like to acknowledge the immense pain felt by those who have lost loved ones to suicide. I bring this topic to this chamber today with the utmost respect for their grief and their ongoing trauma.

In regional Australia, including communities like Streaky Bay and the neighbouring Elliston district, the heartbreak of severe mental health issues is palpable. Recently, those communities have endured an agonising series of losses. The beautiful community of Streaky Bay on the Far West Coast is incredible. I encourage everyone to go and visit this amazing town. But this community of less than 2½-thousand people has had seven suicides in the last two months alone. For a community of that size, that is absolutely unacceptable. Just down the road in Elliston, a community of less than 1½-thousand, they've had three suicides in recent times, ranging from teenagers to locals in their 70s.

Our farmers, teachers, ag workers and regional families are grappling with immense, compounding pressure, and we all feel it. From soaring fuel prices to the unforgiving reality of drought, the weight on their shoulders is heavy. Too often in the country, a culture of suffering and silence prevails. People shoulder impossible burdens completely alone, and they do not ask for help when they desperately need it. I must acknowledge the tireless work of my predecessor, Rowan Ramsey, whose dedicated advocacy secured headspace centres in Port Lincoln, Whyalla, Port Augusta and Port Pirie. I also acknowledge him for getting a Medicare mental health clinic set up in Port Pirie. These services are essential lifelines. But communities like Streaky Bay are a long way away from Port Lincoln or Whyalla, and these are the sorts of communities that are missing out. I encourage the government to focus on these smaller communities in the more remote and regional parts of Australia and indeed South Australia.

Earlier this year, I had the privilege of speaking with April and Georgia, incredible youth advocates from ReachOut Australia. They reminded me of the vital importance of safe, anonymous online support for our young people navigating complex modern challenges. I too, in another career, helped the Black Dog Institute develop an app for mental health in our young people in this country.

Despite these essential services and fantastic organisations, vast and dangerous gaps remain across the electorate of Grey, and it's because of these remaining gaps and the staggering human reality of nine Australians losing their lives to suicide every single day that we must look critically at how national resources are being deployed. More than 150 Australians attempt to take their lives each day.

When the coalition was in government, we proudly backed a $2 billion mental health and suicide prevention plan. We expanded the headspace network to over 150 centres, many in Grey, and funded 40 adult mental health services to support people closer to home. In stark contrast, recent years have seen a retreat. The current government has reduced Medicare funded mental health sessions from 20 to 10 at a time of growing demand. Key coordinating bodies have been absorbed back into the department, severely reducing oversight. We must shift from a focus of inputs and short-term announcements to relentless focus on results and outcomes.

I call on the government to strengthen transparency in funding. Every dollar spent must be tied to clear, measurable outcomes and evaluation. Community based services must be prioritised as our best place to engage locals practically and accessibly. A consistent national framework for accountability must be reinstated so programs can be properly assessed and improved over time. Australians deserve a system that measures success by lives saved, not just by money spent.

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