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The Greens have warned now is a dangerous time to be distracted from the real climate action needed to support farmers and have urged the National Farmers Federation to hold The Nationals to account ahead of their meeting today.
Greens spokesperson for agriculture, Peter Whish-Wilson, said trying to appease The Nationals is a fool’s game.
“Since forming government the LNP have ripped up nearly all existing climate policies such as the carbon price and clean energy package, ramped up fossil fuel exploration and production, whilst not providing a single credible policy that will tackle global warming.
“Now is a dangerous time to be distracted from the real climate action needed to support farmers. The NFF needs to hold the LNP to account.
“With the right policy settings and investment, agriculture is one of the few industries that can become not just carbon neutral, but carbon positive.
“Many farmers are still putting off implementing carbon farming techniques, partly because of a lack of policy support or information about effectiveness. We need to change that. Without a price on carbon, demand for carbon drawdown will remain limited; it would be good to know where the NFF stand on this.
“The Nationals have admitted to no longer representing farmers and their anti-climate ideology is utterly offensive to farmers facing the real-world impacts of climate change, which is currently costing the average Aussie farming family $30,000 a year.
“Carbon sequestration alone is not enough. There are huge opportunities for Australian farmers to change their practices, regenerate their land and create new revenue streams by selling carbon abatement to the carbon market; just like they did before the carbon price was abolished.”

The Australian Government has established a $5.15 million scholarship program to grow and upskill the mental health and suicide prevention workforce to ensure that all Australians have access to high quality, affordable, person centred mental health care when they need it.
The Mental Health Nursing and Allied Health Scholarship Program was announced as part of the Morrison Government’s record $2.3 billion investment in mental health and suicide prevention in the 2021–22 Budget to attract, train and retain key mental health professionals and to address workforce pressures.
The Program will provide 278 scholarships to support mental health nurses and allied health practitioners including psychologists to enter the mental health workforce, in addition to upskilling existing health practitioners in the mental health sector.
Minister for Health and Aged Care, Greg Hunt, said the scholarships will allow health care professionals to complete mental health related tertiary, vocational and continued professional development courses and clinical placements in mental health settings
“Across Australia our mental health workforce has been stretched, particularly during the pandemic, and there are plenty of opportunities for health care workers to move into rewarding work in mental health,” Minister Hunt said.
“Providing opportunities for health care professionals to access appropriate training in mental health and suicide prevention will increase the numbers of skilled professionals to meet demand for services now and into the future,” Minister Hunt said.
Assistant Minister to the Prime Minister for Mental Health and Suicide Prevention, David Coleman, said investing in mental health training for health care professionals will also promote mental health as a career option.
“The program will provide 126 postgraduate nursing scholarships for courses related to mental health and suicide prevention,” Assistant Minister Coleman said.
“It will also support up to 152 allied health practitioners including psychologists working in mental health and suicide prevention for related tertiary, vocational and continuing professional development courses and clinical placements.”
The Program will also focus on rural and remote locations, with priority given to health care workers who live and/or work in these rural areas (MM 3-7).
Minister for Regional Health, Dr David Gillespie, said the program aims to address mental health workforce pressure nationally, including those in rural and remote areas of Australia.
“Access to skilled mental health workers shouldn’t be dependent on where you live, and upskilling health workers who are already living and working in rural and remote Australia is a great way to expand their skills and meet their communities’ needs,” Minister Gillespie said.
“For this reason, there will be a preference for applicants living or working in rural and remote areas.”
Alongside the prioritisation for applicants from rural and remote regions, a minimum of five per cent of scholarships will be made available to Aboriginal and Torres Strait Islander applicants as first priority. This will ensure vital services are available for all Australians and can be delivered in a culturally safe and appropriate way.
Individuals can express their interest in applying for a place from November 2021 through the Australian College of Nursing. The scholarships will be supported from Semester 1, 2022

Home and residential aged care providers will develop coordinated workforce planning approaches under a new Australian Government service aimed at ensuring quality levels of personalised care are strengthened and maintained.
Minister for Senior Australians and Aged Care Services, Richard Colbeck, launched the Workforce Advisory Service today which will support aged care providers in attracting, retaining and skilling their workforce.
The independent, free and confidential service will assist aged care providers to be reform ready helping to develop coordinated service-level workforce training and skills plans, and leverage supports available across the sector to increase the skills of the workforce.
Minister Colbeck said this will ensure workers can better access and hold the appropriate level of knowledge and skills to meet the individual care needs of senior Australians within a facility or service.
“This will be a win-win for workers, providers and senior Australians alike and will be an important step in building a world-class aged care workforce for Australia,” Minister Colbeck said.
“It will help aged care workers to acquire qualifications and training which will enhance their skills and knowledge and improve their career opportunities. It will support providers to implement workforce planning into business-as-usual.
“And it will help ensure senior Australians receive the individual, quality care they need and deserve.”
The workforce planning advice will be tailored to individual service needs and could include recommendations for widening the search for new workers.
Minister Colbeck said aged care service delivery was becoming increasingly complex as people live longer with more chronic and complex conditions.
“This requires aged care providers to employ a larger workforce with more specialised skills and knowledge to be able to deliver consumer directed care to meet the diverse needs of senior Australians.” he said.
Establishing the Workforce Advisory Service is another response to the Royal Commission into Aged Care Quality and Safety, which recommended funding for education and training to improve the quality of care and aligns with broader Government priorities to increase workforce skills and capabilities.
The service, provided by PricewaterhouseCoopers, is funded under a $5.9 million expansion of the Government’s Business Advisory Service, and advisors will use best practice guidance from industry while working with providers.
Minister Colbeck said the Government will continue to work closely with the Aged Care Workforce Industry Council to provide workforce planning support to the nation’s aged care providers.
More information about the service is available here.

The Morrison Government is today launching the world’s first National Children’s Mental Health and Wellbeing Strategy.
The Strategy provides a framework to guide the development of a comprehensive, integrated system of services to maintain and support the mental health and wellbeing of children aged 0-12 and their families.
Minister for Health and Aged Care, Greg Hunt, said the Strategy was part of the Morrison Government’s long-term national health plan.
“Caring for the mental health and wellbeing of our younger children, especially during the COVID-19 pandemic, is critical. We know that proper support can improve long-term outcomes and can help children achieve their full potential in life,” Minister Hunt said.
“To ensure that every child has the opportunity to grow up in a healthy and supportive environment that helps them, and their families and communities, to thrive, we need a mental health and wellbeing system that is well-designed, comprehensive, and nationally consistent.”
“This strategy shows us how, and will be crucial to our current ongoing reform of the mental health and suicide prevention system. It is about ensuring the best for our children at each and every step and I’m honoured to launch it today.”
The Strategy provides a roadmap through coordinated investment and program development to ensure that children aged 0-12 can have all the opportunities for growth and development possible.
Through four focus areas, the Strategy outlines the requirements for an effective system of care for children:

1. Family and Community
2. Service System
3. Education Settings
4. Evidence and Evaluation

Assistant Minister to the Prime Minister for Mental Health and Suicide Prevention, David Coleman, MP said the aim of this universal approach will bring lasting benefits for Australia and for generations to come.
“Half of all adult mental health challenges emerge before the age of 14, yet few children below the age of 12 receive professional support. As a nation, we need to acknowledge this and do everything we can to change it. Our Government is committed to the task,” Assistant Minster Coleman said.
“This is the first time a national government has developed a strategy that considers mental health and wellbeing of our children, as well as their families and communities who nurture them.”
Importantly, several key priorities identified in the strategy received funding in the 2021-22 Budget, which provided a record $2.3 billion for the National Mental Health and Suicide Prevention Plan aimed at transforming Australia’s mental health system. Specific initiatives dedicated to supporting the mental health and wellbeing of children and their parents and carers included:

• $54.2 million to create new Head to Health Kids mental health and wellbeing centres for children up to 12 years, in partnership with the state and territory governments;
• $42.3 million to support access to parenting education and support, to build parenting strategies and help parents to identify problem behaviours early;
• $26.8 million to support Kids Helpline and meet the increased demand for services;
• $47.4 million for perinatal mental health initiatives; and
• $111.4 million to allow family members and/or carers to access up to two of a patient’s available Medicare-subsidised psychological therapy sessions, and to expand access to group sessions where appropriate.

The development of the Strategy was undertaken by the National Mental Health Commission, supported by an expert advisory group.
National Mental Health Commission Chair, Mrs Lucy Brogden AM and CEO, Ms Christine Morgan thanked the many people who helped make the strategy a reality.
“This is one of the most important and meaningful and significant pieces of work we have done at the Commission,” Ms Morgan said.
“This Strategy proposes a fundamental, cultural shift in the way we think about the mental health and wellbeing of our children, including a change in language and the adoption of a continuum-based model of mental health and wellbeing.”
“We could not have done it without our advisory group led by our co-chairs, Professors Frank Oberklaid and Christel Middledorp, and I would like to thank them for their incredible work. Through them and others, we have engaged with hundreds of people who care deeply about the mental health and wellbeing of our children and understand the immense benefits that flow from protecting and nurturing it.”
The Strategy is available on the Commission’s website www.mentalhealthcommission.gov.au
Australians looking for support throughout the COVID-19 pandemic can access the Beyond Blue Coronavirus Mental Wellbeing Support Service anytime via telephone at 1800 512 348 or online at coronavirus.beyondblue.org.au.
Anyone experiencing distress can seek immediate advice and support through Lifeline
(13 11 14), Kids Helpline (1800 55 1800), or the Government’s digital mental health gateway, Head to Health (www.headtohealth.gov.au).