Greens spokesperson for Mental Health Hon Alison Xamon MLC has congratulated the Government on the successful trial of the police and mental health co-response team initiative – but says there is still a way to go to fix the multiple gaps that still exist within the mental health system.
Ms Xamon said the current and previous Governments were to be commended for implementing the first trial of its kind in Australia – following a staggering sixfold increase in police call-outs to incidents involving mental health in just 10 years.
Elder abuse is a growing concern – and one that will continue to grow as the population ages, Greens spokesperson for Seniors and Ageing Hon Alison Xamon MLC has said today, following the tabling of the final report of the Parliamentary Select Committee into Elder Abuse.
Ms Xamon, who took the role of deputy chair during the 12 month inquiry, said financial abuse was often not recognised as a form of elder abuse.
She said she hoped the report’s findings would help people to understand the range of behaviours that constituted abuse.
Greens spokesperson for Suicide Prevention Hon Alison Xamon MLC has called on the Government to ensure it provides funding certainty for the WA suicide prevention services, in light of a worrying lack of provisions allocated to the sector in the 2018-19 State Budget.
To mark World Suicide Prevention Day, Ms Xamon expressed concerns about the lack of funds put aside for prevention services beyond 2019.
Greens spokesperson for Child Protection Hon Alison Xamon MLC has renewed her call for the establishment of an independent child advocacy service to better protect children from harm, to mark today's White Balloon Day.
Ms Xamon said child abuse was entirely preventable – and protecting children was a whole-of-community responsibility.
She said the latest figures from National Association for Prevention of Child Abuse and Neglect (NAPCAN) showed more than 35,000 Australian children were abused or neglected in 2017.
Accidental drug-related deaths have more than doubled in Western Australia over the last 15 years, Greens spokesperson for Alcohol and Other Drugs Hon Alison Xamon MLC has told Parliament to mark International Overdose Awareness Day, which is today, with prescription drugs now the biggest killer.
Ms Xamon said the latest report from the Pennington Institute showed drugs were the cause of 23% of all accidental deaths in Australia in 2016 – more than double the number of deaths caused by car accidents.
