Suicide prevention measures launched

WELLINGTON: The Government has announced it will set up an office dedicated to reducing suicide rates as it tries to tackle worsening statistics.

Prime Minister Jacinda Ardern and Health Minister David Clark yesterday launched the Government’s longawaited plan for suicide prevention.

Suicide rates in New Zealand reached their highest levels — since records began — in the year to June.

Deaths among youth, Maori and Pacific Island people rose sharply.

As part of its plan, the Government will set up a suicide prevention office — one of the recommendations from a sweeping inquiry into the state of the country’s mental health services.

The office will coordinate work between different government bodies

to try to reduce suicide rates as well as monitoring the Government’s progress in the area.

It will initially be run out of the Ministry of Health before becoming a separate body run by a new director of suicide prevention.

That appointment is expected to be made shortly.

The ‘‘every life matters’’ plan replaces a previous government suicide prevention strategy that was in place until 2016 and aims to provide an overarching strategy for how to tackle the problem.

‘‘Our rate of suicide is a longterm national tragedy and has been for many years. Change will take time but this plan and the actions the Government has already in place are an important start,’’ Ms Arden said.

The Government included $1.9 billion of new funding for mental health over four years, including $40 million specifically put aside for suicide prevention in its May Budget.