Suicide Prevention Australia, the national peak body representing the suicide prevention sector, has sent a petition to the Australian government calling for the reinstatement of the life-saving Suicide Prevention Research Fund (SPRF) which has been defunded effective today.
The petition has gathered 555 handwritten signatures from people across the country — including researchers, service providers, clinicians, people with lived and living experience of suicide, and passionate advocates — who all understand the critical role that research plays in saving lives.
Since 2018, the SPRF has funded world-leading research into suicide risk factors, prevention strategies, and real-world interventions. Its defunding represents a significant setback to our national capacity to respond to suicide with the insight that is needed.
From tackling suicide and self-harm in a remote prison, to researching how to prevent youth suicide through specialised high school programs, research supported by the SPRF across 27 universities has delivered real-world impact, informing policy, service delivery, and frontline interventions. Without ongoing funding, vital projects investigating suicide prevention pathways will not go forward, weakening our national ability to prevent suicide with the insight, urgency, and innovation required.
The SPRF has helped position Australia as a global leader in suicide prevention research. At the International Association for Suicide Prevention World Congress held in Vienna this month, the work of SPRF-funded researchers was showcased in 14 separate presentations — a clear demonstration of the fund’s far-reaching impact on the international stage.
The defunding of the SPRF comes just days after the Productivity Commission released a report reviewing the current National Mental Health and Suicide Prevention system. The report found that the National Agreement is failing to deliver the coordinated, measurable, and outcomes-driven action needed to reduce suicide and distress in Australia. A key recommendation from this review is for a new National Agreement to be guided by the government’s National Suicide Prevention Strategy. Research and evaluation is listed as a critical enabler of this strategy and defunding the country’s only Suicide Prevention Research Fund is a direct contradiction to this recommendation.
Suicide Prevention Australia Acting CEO, Chris Stone, said the petition sends a powerful message from researchers, frontline workers, people with lived experience and the broader community that cutting the SPRF is a step backwards.
“More than 3,000 people die every year to suicide, and more than 55,000 make an attempt to take their life. We cannot afford to roll back investment in suicide prevention at a time when distress levels remain high,” said Mr Stone.
This petition calling for the urgent reinstatement of the SPRF echoes the powerful open letter released earlier this year from 31 Australians with a lived and living experience of suicide, urging the government to take action and make suicide prevention a national priority.
“Voices from the sector and people with a lived and living experience emphatically aligned on the need for the Suicide Prevention Research Fund to be reinstated, which cannot be ignored,” said Mr Stone.
“This isn’t just about funding research, but ensuring we have the evidence base to deliver the most effective suicide prevention strategies possible across the country. This is about reducing deaths by suicide in Australia.”
Suicide Prevention Australia urges the Australian Government to reinstate the Suicide Prevention Research Fund.
To get help 24/7, phone Lifeline on 13 11 14 or the Suicide Call Back Service on 1300 659 467. If you or someone you know are in immediate danger, phone 000 for emergency services.
Help to report about suicide safely is available online: Go to https://mindframe.org.au/
Media enquiries:
Alex Pursehouse 0423 196 136 or alexp@suicidepreventionaust.org
Amelia Hew 0410 591 134 or ameliah@suicidepreventionaust.org
About Suicide Prevention Australia
Suicide Prevention Australia is the national peak body and we’ve been providing support for Australia’s suicide prevention sector for more than 30 years. We support and advocate for our members to drive continual improvement in suicide prevention policy, programs and services. Our reach is broad, including member organisations, governments, businesses, researchers, practitioners and those with lived experience. We are focused on an integrated approach to suicide prevention encompassing mental health, social, economic and community factors. We believe that through collaborative effort and shared purpose, we can achieve our vision of a world without suicide.
