The Wire

Opposition Leader Tony Abbott has today announced that if elected, the coalition would spend 1.5 billion dollars on mental health. The announcement comes after fierce criticism of the Labor government’s lack of funding for mental health by such people as Australian of the Year Professor Patrick McGorry. It’s also hot on the heels of the resignation of Health Minister Nicola Roxon’s key mental health adviser, Professor John Mendoza. Besides more beds, the proposed package would fund twenty early psychosis intervention centres. Professor Ian Hickie from The Brain And Mind Research Institute At The University Of Sydney says this is exactly the kind of political commitment mental health advocates have been looking for.