The bill as introduced would come into force the day after it received Royal assent. We consider that this would not provide adequate time for a mental health and wellbeing strategy to be developed. We note that the principal Act delayed commencement of the provisions that required health strategies to be prepared by 12 months. We are advised that preparation of a Mental Health and Wellbeing Strategy would likely require a similar period.

We therefore propose amending clause 8 to insert new Part 3 into Schedule 1 of the principal Act. Our amendment would state that section 46A, pertaining to the making of a Mental Health and Wellbeing Strategy, would not take effect until 12 months after the date on which the bill came into force.

The principal Act sets out which entities are considered “health entities”. Health entities have a range of obligations under the Act, including giving effect to the Government Policy Statement.

Submitters stressed that the bill’s classification of the Mental Health and Wellbeing Commission as a health entity could undermine its independence. We heard that the Commission’s monitoring and oversight role would sit in tension with the requirement to deliver on government policy direction, as proposed in the bill as introduced. We acknowledge that the Mental Health and Wellbeing Commission itself does not support the proposal.

We agree with submitters about the importance of maintaining the Commission’s independent status. We therefore recommend removing clause 4(1) of the bill, which would identify the Mental Health and Wellbeing Commission as a health entity.

We note that submitters were largely in favour of the Commission being involved in the preparation of strategic documents where this would not compromise its independence. We agree that the Commission has a role to play in providing advice in this area, when it thinks fit, but that it should not be required to participate in the usual government consultation processes. We consider that the Minister should be required to have regard to any advice from the Commission when preparing the Mental Health and Wellbeing Strategy. Accordingly, we recommend inserting new section 46A(1A) to prescribe this.

As a consequence of this change, we recommend removing clause 6 of the bill, which would require the Minister to consult the Commission in the preparation of the Government Policy Statement. Our proposed new section 46A(1A) would be a broader requirement for the Minister to consider advice provided by the Commission.

Some submitters observed a discrepancy between the focus on addiction outcomes in the provisions relating to the purpose and requirements for the strategy, and the title “Mental Health and Wellbeing Strategy”. We considered whether the name of the strategy should be amended.

We were advised that the term “wellbeing” is typically used to refer to the holistic concept of wellness and the factors that can affect mental health, and is well understood across the health sector. We consider that the name for the strategy, as set out in the bill as introduced, should be retained. We do, however, recommend some amendments to clause 7 for greater consistency. We recommend amending section 46A(2) to replace the reference to “addiction” with “wellbeing”. We also recommend amendments to section 46A(3) to include reference to wellbeing outcomes, rather than addiction outcomes. However, we do not wish to preclude focus on addiction, so we also recommend specifying in section 46A(2) that minimisation of harm from addiction is included in the long-term improvement of mental health and wellbeing outcomes.

We are aware that the principal Act sets out requirements for other health strategies, including provisions requiring a focus on workforce development. We recommend amending section 46A(3)(c) to bring the Mental Health and Wellbeing Strategy in line with the other strategies. Our amendment would require that the strategy set out priorities for mental health and addiction services and health sector improvements (as they relate to mental health and wellbeing), including workforce development.