By Wide Bay Mp Llew O’brien
Recovery, whether from illness, adversity, or natural disaster, is never a quick process.
It’s been almost 18 months since the bushfires that devastated parts of Noosa, and the Morrison Government remains committing to helping heal the scars these fires have left on our environment and in our communities.
As part of these recovery efforts, I was pleased to announce $149,750 for the Noosa Environmental Education Hub to run a bushfire recovery education program in three local schools and $29,952 for Noosa Integrated Catchment Association to rehabilitate parts of Girraween Nature Reserve.
As we have seen recently with the snap lockdown in Brisbane, we are not yet out of the woods with COVID-19, and if Australia’s economic recovery is to remain on track, we must remain cautious and adhere to medical advice.
People aged over 70, or with certain health conditions, are now eligible for the vaccine which is being rolled out to more than 4,000 general practices by the end of April including in the Noosa area.
To check your eligibility, or find your nearest practice providing vaccinations, visit australia.gov.au or call 1800 020 080.
You may also be aware that I recently supported a motion for a Royal Commission into Veteran Suicides.
Countless veterans have sacrificed their mental wellbeing to keep us safe, and we owe them, at the very least, our support in their recovery. With veterans twice as likely to take their own lives as the rest of us, there is clearly a significant problem that we must take action on.
We need to examine how we can maintain the mental and physical wellbeing of veterans, including the provision of adequate funding for the services like advocacy and occupational therapy.
I was also pleased to be appointed to the Select Committee to inquire into Mental Health and Suicide Prevention, which will examine a range of findings and reviews of the current mental health system in the wake of the COVID-19 pandemic and the 2019 bushfires, working towards better mental health care for all Australians.
