What’s in the budget for you?

THE Black Dog Institute welcomes the Albanese Government’s first full Federal Budget which included $586.9 million in new funding for mental health as well as $14.6 billion in cost-of-living support. 

“Helping people meet their basic needs – feeding their family, having a roof over their heads, keeping the lights on – is as much a mental health measure as it is economic,”

Black Dog Institute’s First Nations Director Clinton Shultz said the Institute welcomed the $10.5 million in new funding towards supporting the social and emotional wellbeing of First Nations people in the lead up to, during and following the Voice referendum. 

“First Nations people are already feeling the impact of the referendum debate. We’ve seen increased distress in communities around our country,” Mr Shultz said. 

“We hope this funding can be used to both understand and prevent social and emotional impacts to First Nations people, not only during the Voice debate but through the whole implementation of the Uluru statement – including Truth and Treaty processes.” 

The Black Dog Institute welcomes funding for The Essential Network (TEN), providing a tailored mental health service for frontline healthcare workers and the National Emergency Worker Support Service (NEWSS) – a mental health service for employed or volunteer first responders, including police, fire, ambulance, maritime rescue…