While the Coalition is worried about Australia’s economic situation, Labor continues to spend – making a pledge for one billion dollars towards supporting Australia’s mental health.
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00:00Federal Labor has been seeking to put health care at the centre of its re-election pitch
00:06and this $1 billion pledge allows it to continue to try to campaign on comfortable turf, health
00:13care.
00:14Labor says if it wins the election the money will go towards building or upgrading about
00:1930 walk-in mental health services offering free support and about 60 headspace centres
00:24for young people.
00:25Labor is also vowing to boost the workforce and provide additional support to young people
00:29with complex needs.
00:31The government had been under pressure to expand mental health support after dumping
00:35a COVID-era doubling of Medicare funded psychology sessions.
00:39The coalition has vowed to reinstate those 20 sessions if it wins the looming election.
00:44The coalition believes it has little to gain in a fight about health and so far has matched
00:49most of the major health commitments.
00:51Anthony Albanese says this money will provide more Australians with free public health care.
00:56Certainly Labor has a plan to strengthen Medicare and what this will do is make sure
01:03that more Australians, particularly more young Australians, can get the help they need with
01:09this card here.
01:10Mr Albanese, you say you care about young people and yet since getting elected your
01:15government has approved 33 new coal and gas projects.
01:19The press conference was briefly hijacked by a rising tide protester arguing that the
01:25use of fossil fuels was a major issue for youth mental health.
01:29Security quickly saw her out.
01:31The Prime Minister is of course in Sydney for tonight's leaders debate but during an
01:35election campaign there is no time to waste and he'll also be seeking to sandbag marginal
01:41seats in New South Wales.
01:43New South Wales is always a fight come election time and it's home to a lot of those outer
01:47suburban households struggling with cost of living issues.
01:50So with this pitch, Prime Minister Anthony Albanese will be seeking to appeal directly
01:55to them.