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Mental health and suicide prevention services are key priorities of the Government, says Prime Minister Scott Morrison.

“Suicide takes far too many Australians, devastating families and local communities.

“One life lost to suicide is one too many, which is why my Government is working towards a zero suicide goal,” said the Prime Minister.

As part of the initiative, the PM has appointed Christine Morgan as the new National Suicide Prevention Adviser.

“Ms Morgan will work with my Department and the Minister for Health to drive a whole-of-government approach to suicide prevention, while ensuring prevention services reach Australians that need them and communities are supported,” he said.

The Prime Minster recently addressed the issue in prayer at the Hillsong conference in Sydney.

“Lord, we pray for all of those veterans in our country who are doing it tough,”

“We pray for young people who think about suicide and we pray Lord that you will break the curse of suicide.

“We proclaim it with veterans, we proclaim it with young people, we proclaim it with middle age people going through difficult trials, people suffering from mental health, we pray for remote Indigenous communities, young boys and girls … and we pray for all those families who live with disabilities … we pray you will give them peace and an avalanche of love.

“Lord, we pray for our country and thank you for it. But more than anything else, we thank you for Jesus and his love.”

FamilyVoice Australia National Director Charles Newington praised the move.

“It’s wonderful to see Mr Morrison’s personal interest in these two fields of pain and trauma and his determination to see real change,” Mr Newington said.

“We especially appreciate the recognition of the impact of mental health concerns and suicide upon the natural families of sufferers. We urge the government to ensure that family support be factored into the response.

“The Prime Minister’s prayer over these issues at the Hillsong conference is also very welcome. His example helps people to realise that being a believer is normal and every bit as natural as choosing not to believe in God,” he said.
Addressing 20,000 Christians at the Sydney conference over the weekend, Mr Morrison stated: “I speak about my faith… because I want everyone in this place to feel comfortable about talking about their faith in this country. It’s not a political agenda, it’s just who we are.”