Federal Labor pledges $1 billion in mental health support if re-elected

ABC NEWS (Australia)

While the Coalition is worried about Australia’s economic situation, Labor continues to spend – making a pledge for one billion dollars towards supporting Australia’s mental health.

Transcript

00:00Federal Labor has been seeking to put health care at the centre of its re-election pitch

00:06and this $1 billion pledge allows it to continue to try to campaign on comfortable turf, health

00:13care.

00:14Labor says if it wins the election the money will go towards building or upgrading about

00:1930 walk-in mental health services offering free support and about 60 headspace centres

00:24for young people.

00:25Labor is also vowing to boost the workforce and provide additional support to young people

00:29with complex needs.

00:31The government had been under pressure to expand mental health support after dumping

00:35a COVID-era doubling of Medicare funded psychology sessions.

00:39The coalition has vowed to reinstate those 20 sessions if it wins the looming election.

00:44The coalition believes it has little to gain in a fight about health and so far has matched

00:49most of the major health commitments.

00:51Anthony Albanese says this money will provide more Australians with free public health care.

00:56Certainly Labor has a plan to strengthen Medicare and what this will do is make sure

01:03that more Australians, particularly more young Australians, can get the help they need with

01:09this card here.

01:10Mr Albanese, you say you care about young people and yet since getting elected your

01:15government has approved 33 new coal and gas projects.

01:19The press conference was briefly hijacked by a rising tide protester arguing that the

01:25use of fossil fuels was a major issue for youth mental health.

01:29Security quickly saw her out.

01:31The Prime Minister is of course in Sydney for tonight's leaders debate but during an

01:35election campaign there is no time to waste and he'll also be seeking to sandbag marginal

01:41seats in New South Wales.

01:43New South Wales is always a fight come election time and it's home to a lot of those outer

01:47suburban households struggling with cost of living issues.

01:50So with this pitch, Prime Minister Anthony Albanese will be seeking to appeal directly

01:55to them.

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