Ms ROSOL (Bass) – Honourable Speaker, I rise to speak this evening about A Tasmanian Lifeline (ATL). Lifeline Tasmania provide a range of services and programs in the state, the most well-known of which is the Lifeline Crisis Support Line. I acknowledge the long‑time commitment of the Premier to Lifeline.
A less well‑known service, but no less important to Tasmanians with mental health difficulties, is A Tasmanian Lifeline. ATL is a unique service established with state government funding in response to COVID-19 in 2020. It provides support to individuals and communities.
The service operates from 8.00 a.m. to 8.00 p.m., seven days a week, 365 days a year and runs with 20 paid professional staff.
I hear often from people who are having difficulty accessing mental health care in Tasmania. The Mental Health Council report that long wait times, high costs, unavailable appointments, and a lack of local services are among the top barriers to accessing mental health care. I would add to that that mental health services are also piecemeal and difficult to navigate, particularly for people who are not in a good mental space.
That’s where ATL has been a benefit to the state. It provides free daily support with no wait times from 8.00 a.m. to 8.00 p.m., and Tasmanians are feeling the benefit. While funding was initially intended to be a short‑term response to the increased stress people experienced during COVID-19, the support line is continuing to receive up to 600 calls a month, and last quarter it experienced a 20 per cent increase in calls. Around 30 per cent of calls come from young people under 26 years of age, a figure that’s not surprising given that nearly 50 per cent of young Tasmanians report a mental health condition.
At the other end of the age spectrum, about 40 per cent of callers are aged over 65, many experiencing loneliness and isolation. Any Tasmanian can call the support line and talk about whatever they need to. They’re not judged, but they’re heard and they’re cared for. The service provides callbacks that give an ongoing check in and helps callers know that they’re not alone.
Rather than calling an ambulance or presenting at an emergency department in distress, ATL is providing an alternative place to access mental health care wherever a person is.
As it stands, the funding for A Tasmanian Lifeline is due to expire at the end of June 2026. That’s still some time off, but I raise it now because the impending closure of inpatient services at the Hobart Clinic has drawn attention to the dire state of mental health services in Tasmania. While the Minister for Health, Mental Health and Wellbeing has assured Tasmanians that public mental health services have the capacity to cope with the closure of Hobart Clinic inpatient services, the Greens struggle to believe this.
My office receives more emails about problems with accessing mental health services than almost any other issue. Even without the closure of the Hobart Clinic, Tasmanians are having trouble accessing the mental health support they need. It’s hard to see how public services will be able to absorb the increased need, particularly when public mental health services focus on low-intensity community services or acute hospital services for severe mental illness.
There is a significant gap in the subacute space, a gap which is currently being filled by the Hobart Clinic. Given this situation, the importance of prevention in the mental health space cannot be overemphasised. The number of Tasmanians experiencing mental ill health is growing, and it’s important that we are doing all we can to support people as early as possible to help address their needs and prevent deterioration in their mental health.
That’s why I raise ATL today. The ongoing funding of this service is important for our state and particularly important for the many people who call and receive immediate support. I quote from some of the feedback about the ATL:
I sometimes forget you’re calling but I really love that you offer a call back, that someone is calling me, and without ATL, I wouldn’t be here. I would have got sicker and be gone.
The world is a troubling place these days and Tasmanians are living with higher levels of stress and distress. For that reason, the Greens call on the government to listen to the stories of need, the stories of failure within the system, and to invest in mental health services funding to the level people need. That includes committing to the ongoing funding of A Tasmanian Lifeline. It provides a warm, accessible service and Tasmanians deserve to continue to have access to it.
