Page 1126 - Week 04 - Thursday, 21 April 1994
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by September of that year. The Attorney-General's Department and the Department of Health received a number of submissions on those draft Bills. On 14 September 1993 this house referred the exposure draft Bills to the Standing Committee on Social Policy for further inquiry and report by 16 December 1993. The committee was granted an extension on 9 December to report by today.
This issue has been through a long inquiry process, including at least three calls for submissions and two public hearings. At the same time, work has been occurring nationally and internationally to address mental health legislation. In March 1991 the Australian Health Ministers Conference, of which the ACT is a member, agreed on a mental health statement of rights and responsibilities which sets out standards with which mental health legislation should comply. In December 1991 the United Nations General Assembly adopted 25 principles on the protection of persons with mental illness and the improvement of mental health care.
In April 1992 the Australian Health Ministers Conference agreed to a national mental health policy and a national mental health plan. These included the goal of developing nationally consistent mental health legislation in line with the Health Ministers' statement of rights and responsibilities and the United Nations principles. To help reach this goal, work has commenced at the national level to develop model clauses for consideration by all jurisdictions. However, as outlined in our report, it is uncertain when these will be available and the ACT simply cannot afford to wait under the present regime.
As I mentioned, the issues involved in developing mental health legislation are indeed complex. As indicated by the name of the earlier report, Balancing Rights, it involves trying to balance the rights and needs of people who are unable to look after themselves, people who are a danger to themselves or the community, their families and carers and the community as a whole. There are no easy answers to these issues. This is reflected in the length of the inquiry process and the fact that what we have now is a recommendation for interim legislation.
The committee could not agree on how best to resolve the issues involved with reforming mental health legislation and, as a result, various members of the committee, I understand, are not entirely happy with different parts of the Bill. However, the committee was unanimous in the belief that the regime we have at present is inadequate and that something needs to be done now. The committee's report sets out directions for new legislation that draws upon the inquiries that have preceded it and the Australian Health Ministers' and the United Nations' stated principles. In doing so, it shows the way forward towards meeting the rights and the needs of all in our community.
The report also raises the need for resources for people with a mental dysfunction. The Government formed a interagency working group on mental dysfunction, which reported in May 1993 on 11 gaps in service delivery for people with a mental dysfunction. The Government also submitted to the committee a report outlining action that had been initiated to date to address these gaps. The committee acknowledges the work the Government has done to improve service provision. It also notes, of course, that there is still more to be done. The committee is also aware that a new legislative regime may produce new resource needs and make present unmet needs more apparent. It is also envisaged that the new regime could make the use of present resources more efficient.
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