Jo Briskey
Maribyrnong · Australian Labor Party · Australia
“This Saturday night, the mighty Melbourne Vixens are back in another grand final, their fifth in seven years, and we're going back to back. Five of these women also put on the green and gold for the Australian Diamonds, arguably the most successful national team our country has produced. But here's what gets me.”
“Yesterday, that ask was again answered in another large step forward—the biggest expansion of paid parental leave since Labor created the scheme. This week, paid parental leave in Australia is now a full six months, 26 weeks, paid at a higher rate at just over $1,000 a week, with income limits lifted so more families qualify.”
“Superannuation now lands with every payday instead of months behind, which protects workers least able to absorb being shortchanged. Every one of those changes helps on its own, but, arriving all at once, they take the real pressure off working families. That is real change delivered.”
“Before I came into this place, I spent about just over five years as the CEO of the Parenthood, Australia's peak advocacy body for parents and carers. Our work focused on how we make Australia the best place in the world to be a parent. I spent many hours in this building helping amplify the voices of parents and the needs that they had.”
“But this government is changing it. We're funding pay rises for female dominated sectors like aged care and early childhood education, and the gender pay gap is the lowest it's ever been. This week, paid parental leave grew to 26 weeks, with super paid on top, so that raising a child no longer costs a woman her career or her retirement.”
“When it began in 2011, it gave families 18 weeks, and I watched it change households. I also watched how quickly it could be put at risk. In 2015, parents who used the scheme exactly as it was designed got branded double dippers by those opposite, as if caring for a newborn were a rort.”
The complete record
Every one of 729 lines we hold for Jo Briskey, in date order, each linked to its source. Free to read, in full, without an account. Page 10 of 15.
“Every generation of migration—from postwar European migration and migration from South-East Asian communities to more recent arrivals from Africa, the Middle East and beyond—brings new languages, new settlement patterns and new cultural practices. Our interpreting and translating services have had to evolve alongside our nation, and this bill recognises that reality. By placing TIS National on a clear statutory footing, the legislation ensures that these services are not only protected but positioned to grow, adapt and modernise in step with Australia's changing demographic and technological landscape. Being future ready means investing in workforce capability, supporting the training and development of interpreters and translators, particularly, as I said, in new and emerging community languages.”
“This legislation gives effect to our government's multicultural access and equity policy. It affirms that access to government programs and services should not depend on cultural and linguistic background. It reflects the Albanese Labor government's commitment to a united, cohesive and multicultural Australia—one where diversity is not merely tolerated but valued and supported—and it recognises that language support underpins participation across every domain of life, from health care and education to employment, housing and civic engagement. By placing TIS National on a clear statutory footing, we are providing certainty to service users, interpreters and translators and to the agencies that rely on these services every day. Australia's multicultural story is forever evolving, as are the needs of the communities we serve.”
“This is particularly important in moments of vulnerability: when someone is receiving medical care, when they are dealing with the justice system, when they are navigating aged care, housing or family services, or when they are calling for help in an emergency. In these moments, clear communication is not a luxury; it is essential to dignity, fairness and safety. Social cohesion depends on people believing that our institutions are accessible and fair, regardless of background, accent or language spoken at home. By embedding translating and interpreting services in legislation, this bill strengthens that belief. It sends a powerful message that participation in Australian society is conditional not on perfect English but on shared commitment to one another and the values of fairness and inclusion.”
“They may avoid seeking help, misunderstand critical information or disengage altogether, not because they don't want to participate but because the barriers feel insurmountable. That disengagement does not just affect individuals. It affects families, it affects communities and, ultimately, it affects social cohesion itself. Services like those provided by TIS National are therefore not just transactional; they are relational. They are about building a sense of belonging and about ensuring people feel safe to ask questions, seek help and engage with institutions in moments that matter most.”
“Our prime minister and our government are steadfastly focused on social cohesion and unity strengthened through statements and values. But we know cohesion is not built on rhetoric alone; it is built through action, through trust and through everyday interactions between people and the institutions that serve them. For multicultural communities, language access is the foundation of that trust. When people can communicate clearly with government—with government agencies, health services, schools, courts and emergency responders—they feel included, they feel respected and they feel that the system is working for them, not against them. Without language support, people can feel isolated even while living in the middle of a vibrant community.”
“It is the difference between understanding a diagnosis and leaving confused and anxious, or between asserting their rights and quietly stepping back. The same is true for newer Australians in Flemington, Kensington and Moonee Ponds—communities from Somalia, Ethiopia, Vietnam, China and beyond. These are families who are rebuilding their lives after conflict and hardship; young people balancing school, work and family responsibilities; and parents engaging with schools, early childhood centres and medical services for the first time. For these communities, access to interpreting services builds confidence. It builds trust and it builds connection, not just to government but to the broader Australian community.”
“In doing so, the legislation gives statutory backing to what communities already know to be true: these services are essential infrastructure in a modern, multicultural nation. The community I represent in Melbourne's north-west is one that truly highlights Australia's migration story throughout the generations. In suburbs like Avondale Heights, Keilor East and Niddrie, many older postwar Italian and Greek Australians still speak English as a second language. These are the people who helped build our country, who worked in factories, on construction sites and in small businesses, and who raised families and strengthened our communities. Yet, even after decades in Australia, navigating complex systems like health care, aged care, housing and legal services can be daunting without language support. For them, TIS National is a lifeline.”
“It sets out clearly and transparently the functions of TIS National, including the ability of the secretary to provide or arrange for the provision of translating and interpreting services to Commonwealth agencies and officeholders, to facilitate communication between individuals and government, including states and territories, under formal arrangements via telephone, via video, on site or via other communication technologies and to meet national needs that would otherwise go unmet. The bill also recognises the broader role TIS National plays—not just delivering services but building capability across the sector by supporting, training and developing interpreters and translators, particularly in new and emerging community languages and specialist settings like health and law.”
“Since that time, translating and interpreting services have continued to grow and evolve, adapting to new technologies, new communities and new forms of service delivery while remaining a cornerstone of Australia's multicultural settlement framework. This bill strengthens that proud legacy, but it also firmly looks to the future. It ensures that the services provided by TIS National are not merely preserved but strengthened, supported by clear legislative authority, modern governance arrangements and a mandate that reflects the realities of modern Australia and the needs of an increasingly diverse community. At its core, this legislation establishes a statutory framework for translating interpreting services provided by TIS National within the Department of Home Affairs.”
“As we heard from our previous speaker, Australia first began providing translating services in 1947 and interpreting services in the fifties in response to the arrival of postwar migrants rebuilding their lives in a new country. I'm proud to represent an electorate that is home to many Italian and Greek Australians, who made those journeys after the war and who went on to contribute so deeply to the social, cultural and economic fabric of our nation. In 1973, under the Whitlam Labor government, Australia became the first country in the world to offer a national telephone interpreting service. That decision recognised something profoundly important: that, while English is the predominant language in Australia, it has never been the only language spoken in Australian homes.”
“This bill provides a clear and enduring statutory framework for the essential services delivered by TIS National—services that have quietly but profoundly supported Australians for more than 75 years. While the legislation is technical in parts, its purpose is deeply human. It is about ensuring a grandmother can understand her doctor, a new arrival can speak to Centrelink without fear or confusion, a parent can engage with their child's school and someone calling triple zero in a moment of crisis can be understood and helped without delay. This bill sends a clear and unequivocal message: language support is not discretionary. It is fundamental to safety, participation, fairness and equality.”
“By providing clear statutory support for translating and interpreting services, the bill ensures multicultural communities can access government essential services and civic life on an equitable basis, reinforcing social cohesion and enabling continued contribution to our nation's prosperity and unity. The Translating and Interpreting Services Bill 2025 goes to the heart of who we are as a nation. It's about fairness. It's about dignity. Australia is one of the most successful multicultural nations on the planet, and that success has never been accidental. It is the result of deliberate choices made generation after generation to ensure people are not locked out of opportunity simply because English is not their first language.”
“Following the horrific terrorist attack in Bondi, the Prime Minister observed that we take pride in the fact our country is enriched by both the world's oldest continuous culture and people of every background and tradition, who have enriched our nation with their hard work and their aspiration. That statement speaks to the enduring strength of Australia as a multicultural nation. But pride in our diversity must be matched by the systems that ensure inclusion in practice, not just in principle. This legislation gives effect to that responsibility. It affirms that linguistic background does not diminish a person's belonging, their contribution or their place in Australian society.”
“Taken together, these amendments ensure that our laws keep pace with modern clinical practice and the realities of how care is delivered on the ground. They make it clear that, when a registered nurse is appropriately trained, endorsed and practising within a collaborative framework, we recognise their clinical judgement and support these incredible healthcare professionals in our national health system. By enabling access to PBS subsidies while maintaining strong safeguards and oversight, this bill strikes the right balance between expanding access to care and upholding the high standards Australians rightly expect from their Medicare. Those of us on this side of the chamber have always recognised the incredible role nurses play in keeping our country healthy.”
“This bill enables designated registered nurse prescribers to prescribe certain medicines under the Pharmaceutical Benefits Scheme once they are appropriately trained and endorsed. It does this in two ways. First, it amends the National Health Act 1953 to recognise registered nurses who are endorsed under the National Registration Standard as authorised prescribers, allowing their prescriptions to attract Commonwealth subsidy through the PBS. Second, it amends the Health Insurance Act 1973 to include registered nurses within the Professional Services Review scheme, ensuring appropriate oversight, accountability and patient safety. These are careful and considered changes. They ensure that, as nurses' roles evolve, the legislative framework evolves with them, supporting quality care while maintaining the integrity of our health system.”
“We did so because we know our health system is under pressure, with growing demand, workforce shortages and communities rightly calling for care to be more flexible, more efficient and more centred on their needs. This bill delivers on that commitment. It is practical, sensible reform that strengthens Medicare by modernising how care is delivered and ensuring highly trained health professionals are able to contribute fully within their scope of practice. It recognises that the challenges facing our health system cannot be solved by standing still. They require thoughtful, evidence based reform focused on people, not process, and that is why this reform is so important.”
“Whilst the Health Legislation Amendment (Prescribing of Pharmaceutical Benefits) Bill 2025 directly affects the work of registered nurses, it is fundamentally about everyday Australians—people who find themselves unwell, caring for a loved one or trying to navigate a system that often feels complex, slow and difficult precisely at the moment when they need support the most. This legislation is about making our health system work fairer and better where we need it to work. It is about ensuring people can access safe, affordable medicines without unnecessary delay, and it is about empowering our health workforce to work to its full potential so patients receive timely, high-quality care. The Albanese Labor government also made a clear commitment to prioritise scope-of-practice reforms for health professionals.”
“At the last election, we made a clear commitment to the Australian people not only to strengthen Medicare but to ensure that, after almost a decade of cuts and chaos from those opposite, Australia would have a healthcare system that's accessible and responsive and truly works for the people who rely on it. At the heart of that system is our health workforce, the frontline workers who dedicate their lives to caring for us, our families and our communities when people need them the most. They are the backbone of our healthcare system, and the strength of Medicare depends on our ability to support and enable them to deliver the best possible care.”
“In this place, we have a responsibility not just to mourn but to lead—to lead with decency, with compassion, with unity and with the quiet strength of kindness—to call out hate wherever it appears, to protect those who are targeted, and to ensure that Australia remains a place where people can live, worship, and belong without fear, because kindness is a strength that binds us, compassion is a courage that moves us and unity is a power that carries us forward as a nation. That is the responsibility of this parliament, and that is the responsibility we owe to those who we honour today. May their memories be a blessing.”
“Each name is a life, a family, a future taken and a community left grieving. In remembering them, in honouring them, we make a shared commitment: to never forget; to stand against antisemitism in all its forms, and to stand against all forms of hate; to choose unity over division, compassion over cruelty, courage and curiosity over fear and light over darkness; and to continue the work of building a kinder, safer Australia.”
“As Rabbi Friedman read, we heard about Rabbi Eli Schlanger, 41 years old, an incredible support to his family and community; Peter Meagher, who had spent 34 years on the police force but who was there on the day as a photographer, capturing the joy of the festival; Tibor Weitzen, 78 years old, murdered while sheltering others; Dan Elkayam, 27, a young man from France, visiting and enjoying our great country, who had spent the day on the beach playing soccer before heading out to join the Hanukkah celebrations; Alex Kleytman, 87, a Holocaust survivor; Reuven Morrison, 62, who bravely tried to stop the attackers, throwing a brick and anything else he could find; Marika Pogany, 82, an active community volunteer who distributed meals to those who needed them; Rabbi Yaakov Levitan, described as the backbone of the local Bondi Jewish community; Sofia and Boris Gurman, the first to be gunned down as they tried to wrestle the guns off the perpetrators; Edith Brutman, murdered alongside Tibor Weitzen as she too sheltered others; Boris Tetleroyd, who had come to Australia seeking safety and freedom to live his faith, only to be murdered here because of it; Adam Smyth, 50, a passer-by walking his dog; Tania Tretiak, remembered for her kindness and care of others, and Matilda, just 10 years old—only a year older than my Margot.”
“They remind us of the Australia we strive to be. The following Saturday, my family and I travelled to Sydney to attend the funeral of my husband's grandmother, who had passed away the same day as the attack. After the funeral, Ravi and I felt it was important to go to Bondi to pay our respects, to stand with others and to acknowledge the horror of what had occurred. It was a deeply moving experience for us and our two girls. While we were there, we heard Rabbi Yossi Friedman, who had been reading out the names of the victims each hour. I want to acknowledge Rabbi Friedman for his dedication to honouring those who were lost and for helping families like mine understand who these people were—their lives, their stories, their humanity.”
“This abhorrent act of violent antisemitic terrorism is the very antithesis of who we are as a nation, and yet it happened. But, even in the darkest moments, we also saw the very best of Australia. We saw the extraordinary bravery. We saw compassion. We saw people run towards danger to help strangers. To the first responders, to the active bystanders, to Ahmed al-Ahmed—whose courageous act in disarming one of the attackers saved countless lives—and to every person who helped, comforted, shielded others, stayed and cared for the injured: thank you. There was an outpouring of solidarity right across our country for the victims and their families and for all Jewish Australians, who, in the wake of this attack, continue to carry the weight and fear of rising antisemitism. These acts of courage and kindness speak directly to who we are.”
“On behalf of my family and my community of Maribyrnong, I rise to contribute and share, as others have done, my deepest sympathies and sadness. On the early evening of Sunday 14 December, I was at home with my two girls, Gweny and Margot. I was introducing them to one of my favourite movies, The Sound of Music . It was an ordinary, gentle Sunday summer evening. And then the news broke. As the details became clear about what was unfolding at Bondi, that iconic, much-loved place, like all of us I was shocked, devastated and reeling. People who had been at the beach, celebrating their faith, gathered with friends and family, were suddenly confronted by bullets, by indiscriminate violence and by hatred directed at them because of who they were—because they were Jewish.”
“It's where friendships spark, ideas are swapped, sports teams are celebrated and someone inevitably shouts, 'I'll get the next round'—even when they absolutely shouldn't. It's where new migrants meet their neighbours, where older residents find familiar faces and where working people get the break they deserve. This bill backs that spirit—the working-class heart that defines Maribyrnong, the spirit that lives in an ice-cold beer shared in good company. It gives every punter, whether they're at 'The Doot' on race day or 'The Linc' during footy season, a fair go. It's practical, it's sensible and it is exactly what our community needs. I'm absolutely thrilled to support it. I commend the bill to the House.”
“Protect jobs, and communities breathe easier. Publicans, workers and locals across Maribyrnong tell me the same thing. They're proud of their community and its local institutions. They don't want a special carve-out. They want predictability, they want stability and they want a government that listens. This bill delivers precisely that, so here it is. The bill keeps the lights on at the places where Maribyrnong comes to life. It keeps the parmas coming, the footy banter flowing, the Friday arvo rush humming and our venues full of laughter long into the night. It keeps workers on shift, brewers brewing and locals able to enjoy a pint without needing to phone their bank manager first. In my community the pub is a humble place, but it is where the magic happens.”
“Power bill relief is easing household pressure. Student debts are shrinking instead of ballooning. Prac students in nursing, teaching, midwifery and social work are finally receiving payments. Bulk-billing has been expanded. More urgent care clinics are opening. Aged-care workers are receiving long-overdue pay rises. All of this is happening while we're keeping inflation low. This is Labor delivering on its promise to build a better future while supporting working Australians and providing meaningful cost-of-living relief. It's why this measure sits so comfortably within the government's broader economic approach. It's simple. It's smart. It's aimed exactly where the pressure is. Stabilise the cost of a keg, and you stabilise the cost of running a venue. Stabilise the cost of running a venue, and you protect jobs.”
“It's where someone will always ask how your week has been and will genuinely care about the answer. For older residents, shift workers and people doing it tough, it can be the most important social place that they have. It can be the place they feel welcome and the place they feel part of something. When prices rise too quickly, people stay home. When people stay home, venues struggle. When venues struggle, hours get cut. When hours get cut, families feel the pinch. It's all connected. This bill helps break that chain of strain. This fits into something bigger. While we're keeping the cost of a pint steady, we're also delivering one of the strongest cost-of-living packages Australia has seen in years. Wages are up. Superannuation is strengthening. Parents have more support, with expanded paid parental leave.”
“And when workers feel secure the whole community benefits. Let's remember that pubs and brewers don't operate in isolation. Behind every keg is a farmer growing barley and hops; there's a truck driver hauling the keg from the brewery to the pub; there's a technician making sure the taps are flowing; there's a linen service washing uniforms and tablecloths; there's a muso playing an acoustic set in the corner on a Sunday afternoon; and there's the local sports club using the pub as its unofficial clubhouse. The whole chain of jobs and small businesses is strengthened when pubs are strong. Some folk might say: 'It's just beer. Why does it matter?' Most people in my community would answer that without even thinking. The local pub is where friendships begin. It's where footy arguments run longer than the AFL season.”
“It's where loneliness lifts, even for a moment. It's where laughter rolls through the room and where conversations jump across generations like they've always belonged together. When a pub goes under, that little ecosystem goes with it. That whole pocket of community joy disappears. We can't take these places for granted. Hospitality workers know better than anyone what happens when a venue is under pressure. They're the first to lose hours, the first to have shifts cut and the first to feel the insecurity that comes with unpredictable rosters. They were hit hardest through the pandemic, and many are still putting their pieces back together. Wages in hospitality have been historically low, conditions have often been inconsistent, and burnout is real. Giving venues stability helps give workers stability.”
“And because it's time limited, a two-year pause, it provides relief without undermining long-term tax policy or public health measures. Let me talk about why this really matters in a community like mine. In Maribyrnong, a pub isn't just a pub. It's where footy fans go to celebrate and commiserate in equal measure. It's where local tradies gather after they knock off early on a warm Friday. It's where young people get their first job and where families head for a parma when they can't be bothered cooking. It's where local sporting clubs host their presentations. It's where community groups hold fundraisers. It's where trivia nights raise money for kids sports kits and school camps. It's also where our new migrants get a genuine taste of Australian community life. It's where our older residents stay connected.”
“They bring flavour, innovation and a sense of community identity you simply don't get from the large multinationals. Keeping them viable keeps choice alive and keeps a tap list interesting, which every publican and every regular appreciates. The best thing about this measure is how targeted it is. It applies only to draught beer, which is in the kegs that pubs and clubs serve from. It doesn't apply to bottles, cans, spirits or RTDs—just the stuff on tap. That's deliberate. This isn't about cheap alcohol or encouraging people to overindulge and it's not about rewriting the entire alcohol tax framework. It's about one thing: supporting a sector that strengthens communities, employs locals and keeps our suburbs vibrant.”
“Now, let's talk about the brewers because they're doing it tough too—especially the small independent producers who rely heavily on keg sales. Across Maribyrnong, it is widely understood that small brewers are carrying immense cost pressures. Raw materials are up, freight is up, and packaging is up. These aren't multinational companies with global buffers and giant reserves; they're local businesses that are employing local people and bringing creativity, craftmanship and distinct Victorian character into Australia's beer scene. This pause gives them breathing room. It's the space they need to plan production, retain staff and continue contributing to local jobs. Let's be honest. Victorians love independent beer. We take pride in our small brewers.”
“Publicans across Ascot Vale and Moonee Ponds have told me directly that they can't keep raising prices, because people are already struggling, but they can't absorb the rising costs either. That's the reality of Maribyrnong and right across the country. These are small operators, family run businesses and local employers trying to stay afloat while doing the right thing by their staff and their communities. They're not making noise for attention; they are genuinely under pressure. When local venues are under pressure, so are local jobs, so are apprenticeships, so are young workers earning their first pay cheques and so are the suppliers and the brewers who rely on the venues to survive. This measure helps steady the ship. And, when you steady the ship for a pub, you steady life for hundreds of people around it.”
“I take this opportunity to acknowledge the hardworking hospo members of the United Workers Union, who fight for fair hours, secure jobs and decent conditions, strengthening the very venues that keep our communities connected. For years now, pubs and venues have been hit by challenge after challenge. First, the pandemic smashed their revenue and threw their future into complete uncertainty. Then supply chain issues pushed the cost of things up—power bills, produce prices, keg transport and insurance costs. Our government recognises that and recognises the pressure our publicans are under. Every automatic excise increase pushed the price of draught beer higher and higher until the cost curve started to resemble a skate park.”
“In Kensington the Melbourne Cup crowd may be long gone for the year but the Doutta Galla Hotel is still buzzing and full of character. Up in Gladstone Park the family run Gladstone Park Hotel remains the go-to spot for birthdays, knock-offs, community raffles—you name it. These aren't just iconic local pubs; they're community gathering places that double as dining rooms, meeting spaces, live music venues, sports hubs and unofficial community centres—with much better food! Behind the bar, keeping everything moving, are hospitality workers—bartenders pulling beers, flat out during the footy; the waiter navigating a packed dining room on a Saturday night; and the kitchen crew sweating it out to keep parmas flying out the door. They're the heartbeat of the industry.”
“This keeps the tax on the keg steady and stops the price of a pint from creeping up when people are already struggling with cost of living everywhere else. And, importantly, it backs in the pubs, clubs, brewers and hospitality workers that are such a big part of life in my electorate. This is a measure people can genuinely feel in their weekly routines, in the budgets of local families and in the life of their sports clubs and community groups, who rely on their local venues as meeting places and social hubs. Let me paint a picture. If you're in Essendon on a Friday arvo you'll see locals piling into the Linc or the Royal after work. In Ascot Vale you've got punters catching up at the Union or the recently re-opened Laurel.”
“Maribyrnong is known for many things—iconic sporting venues, historic shopping strips and long-established suburbs that have helped shape Melbourne's identity for well over a century. With such strong foundations, it's no surprise that our electorate is also home to many of Melbourne's most popular pubs and hospitality venues. In suburbs across Maribyrnong the local pub isn't just somewhere to grab a drink; it's the beating heart of the neighbourhood. It's where people come together, celebrate wins big and small, decompress after long days, share laughter and look after one another. That's why these bills, the Excise Tariff Amendment (Draught Beer) Bill 2025 and the Customs Tariff Amendment (Draught Beer) Bill 2025, which put a simple, sensible two-year pause on draught beer excise indexation, are so welcome.”
“Let's reach out, listen and support each other because mental health is everyone's business, and together we can make sure no-one faces it alone.”
“Mental Health Month and its theme of taking steps on your wellbeing journey is a reminder that mental health wellbeing touches every part of our lives. It is about compassion, community and connection. It's about recognising every step, big or small, that someone takes to look after their mental health. It's about building a country where no-one feels ashamed to ask for help and where care is available, when and where it's needed. The Albanese government is investing in reform, but the heart of this work lives in our communities, in our Lifeline volunteers, in our men's sheds, in our mental health workforce and in the courage of those who share their stories. So, as we head towards the end of our parliamentary year, let's keep taking those steps. Let's keep the conversation going.”
“The Albanese Labor government's National Suicide Prevention Strategy takes a whole-of-government, whole-of-society approach, tackling health, economic and social drivers of distress. Listening to lived experience must remain at the heart of policy and service delivery. Earlier today, I attended a briefing from Dr Alex Hains, the head of the National Suicide Prevention Office. He walked us through the new National Suicide Prevention Strategy and the early development of the National Suicide Prevention Outcomes Framework, the tool that will help us understand what's working, where the gaps are and where support needs to go. It's evidence based, compassionate reform and exactly the direction we need to be heading.”
“On top of that, we've committed an additional $361 million through our stronger Medicare reforms, including $163 million for a new National Early Intervention Service that anyone can access for free. Our government is committed to getting this right for the long-term. We can't talk about mental health without talking about suicide. As a co-chair for the Parliamentary Friends of Suicide Prevention, I co-hosted an event in September to mark World Suicide Prevention Day. We heard from Suicide Prevention Australia's leadership and from Leesa Mountford, who turned her family's tragedy into advocacy and hope for others. Her story reminded us that behind every statistic is a person, a life lost, a family grieving, and a community forever changed.”
“Reforming mental health care isn't something you can fix in a single budget with one announcement. It takes time, coordination and genuine partnerships across government with the workforce and, most importantly, with people who have lived experience. We're continuing to build a mental health system that is public, coordinated and fair—a system that backs early intervention, supports the workforce and makes sure care actually reaches the people who need it. Our billion dollar investment will deliver 31 new upgraded Medicare, mental health centres, 20 new youth specialist care centres and eight new perinatal mental health centres, and we're creating 1,200 new training places for clinicians and peer workers because none of this works without the people who deliver the care.”
“This is about giving young people the time to build resilience and real-world connections first, it's about giving parents some peace of mind that the algorithm isn't raising their children and it's about putting responsibility back onto the platforms that have profited from our children's attention without keeping them safe. We can't out-parent an algorithm, and kids can't outwit one. These reforms help give young people, including Netasha and Hayden, a better chance to grow, learn and thrive offline before facing the pressures online. We know our mental health system has some deep structural problems, we know the workforce shortage is real and we know reform won't happen overnight. But, just as we are doing with Medicare, housing and climate action, we're getting on with the job and fixing what's been broken for too long.”
“These aren't isolated stories. They're happening in homes, classrooms and playgrounds across Australia. Social media platforms are designed to be addictive. They feed insecurity. They amplify anxiety. They expose kids to content they simply aren't ready to navigate. That's why the Albanese Labor government is introducing world-leading minimum-age reforms for social media accounts, giving kids a crucial additional 36 months before they're thrown into the online world that can profoundly shape their self-esteem, their relationships and their mental health.”
“I also want to touch on the government's work to protect young people online. We cannot talk about mental health without talking about the impact that social media is having on our kids. I recently held a social media forum with Minister Wells for local parents and teachers in my community. We heard powerful stories from two bright young students in my community about why these social reform changes are necessary. Netasha spoke about how social media began shaping her identity long before she even knew who she was—how the constant comparison, the created perfection and targeted content left her feeling smaller, not stronger. Hayden spoke honestly about what many young men are experiencing—platforms deliberately targeting their insecurities and pulling them into toxic, hypermasculine content without them even realising it.”
“Giving young people help before the challenges escalate can really transform years of silent struggle into a chance to thrive. This new centre is part of the Albanese Labor government's $1 billion investment to expand free public mental health care through Medicare, making it easier than ever before for Australians to get the support they need when they need it. I recently caught up with our local primary health network to get an update on where things are at, and it's coming along quickly. They let me know that there will be more updates in the coming months and that the process is moving along swiftly, and I'm keen to keep my community in the loop every step of the way. Young people in Moonee Valley have been waiting far too long for this service, and I'm determined to see it delivered as quickly as possible.”
“It takes extraordinary dedication to listen, care and help someone see a way forward. The volunteers and staff of Lifeline are the quiet heroes of our mental health system, and their work deserves recognition and support. In Maribyrnong, the Albanese Labor government is boosting access to vital mental health services with a $6.2 million investment to open a new headspace in Moonee Valley. I've spoken about this project a lot, and I will keep speaking about it, because it's such an exciting and important initiative for my community. Headspaces provide free wraparound support for young people aged 12 to 25, covering mental health, physical health, alcohol and drug support, and study and work pathways. As a qualified child and youth psychologist, I know how powerful early support can be.”
“For too many men, especially older men, loneliness can creep in silently. Work ends, routines change, loved ones are lost and suddenly the days get quieter. Social isolation is a major risk factor for poor mental health, and men's sheds tackle that head-on. They offer connection, purpose and mateship, often in ways that feel natural and safe. I'm proud that the Albanese Labor government continues to support men's sheds. We recognise that connection and prevention start in local halls, community groups and sheds just like these. I've also had the recent opportunity to meet with the new CEO of Lifeline, Graham Strong. Lifeline has been answering calls from Australians in crisis for more than 60 years, offering compassion, understanding and hope. Each call is a chance to save a life.”
“For too long, mental health has been seriously stigmatised. The reality is that mental health is health. It deserves the same care, attention and compassion we give to every other part of our wellbeing. Mental Health Month is about starting conversations. More importantly, it's about continuing them. It's about building communities where people feel supported all year round—where taking the first step, or the next one, is seen as an act of strength. Recently I visited two fantastic men's sheds in my community, at Strathmore and Moonee Ponds. They are two remarkable groups that are supporting men's mental health. Men's sheds are more than workshops. They are places of belonging where conversations happen naturally over the workbench, and friendships are formed with shared purpose.”