The Coalition is committed to supporting the Australian community in the fight against the devastation of lives needlessly lost through suicide.
Nearly 2500 Australians commit suicide every year and this tragedy takes an enormous toll on Australian families and is a great loss to our community.
Today I am reaffirming the Coalition will continue the fight against suicide by building on the work and achievements to date.
In 1999 we established the National Suicide Prevention Strategy. The Coalition will commit a further $40 million from 2002-03 to build on this strategy, with funds to help communities build local partnerships to protect their people against suicide. This brings the total funding to fight suicide to $66.4 million.
The strategy recognises that governments cannot address these problems alone and that we must draw on the strengths that businesses, communities, families and individual Australians can bring to our shared goal of fighting suicide in our local communities.
This strategy also recognises that as well as youth there are other groups at greater risk of suicide including older Australians, people in rural and regional Australia, indigenous people and men aged 25 to 44 years.
Activities and funding allocations under the strategy are guided by the National Advisory Council on Suicide Prevention, chaired by Professor Ian Webster.
A new priority under the strategy will be a $2 million commitment to research and development activities aimed at reducing suicide by carbon monoxide poisoning through motor vehicles. Sadly, carbon monoxide poisoning is the second most common form of suicide for both men and women in Australia. There are also tragic incidents where innocent children are involved.
The Coalition will help to reduce these tragic incidents. We will fund the development and trial of a cabin air monitor and obtain an Australian Design Rule for the introduction of the monitor in new Australian motor vehicles. We will also develop and introduce tailpipe modification devices for used cars.
I am today announcing that a re-elected Coalition Government will provide a $500,000 grant to the Wesley Mission to support their LifeForce work on suicide prevention.
This $500,000, allocated from the National Suicide Prevention Strategy, will be matched by a grant from the Percomm company and thus is a wonderful example of the social coalition my Government has worked hard to promote.
LifeForce educates community members to recognise a suicidal person’s cry for help, to intervene confidently in a crisis and to have knowledge of the resources available in the community for referrals. With these new funds LifeForce will be expanded to Australia-wide coverage, including rural and regional areas. It will also enable LifeForce to help men in the 25 – 44 age group more effectively.
I am also announcing a further $2.4 million in project funding for 22 community groups across Australia to pursue targeted suicide prevention activities in their communities.
These projects are part of an ongoing programme of funding to community groups, managed by the National Advisory Council on Suicide Prevention.
This funding includes projects such as $355 248 for Anglicare Top End to establish and coordinate a Northern Territory-wide Suicide Intervention Trainers Network.
Further details of the community projects being announced today will be provided by Dr Wooldridge.
The Coalition has started this concerted fight against suicide in the Australian community. These initiatives continue the fight, in partnership with the community, to save Australian lives from the despair and tragedy of suicide.
3 November 2001