Mr REPACHOLI (Hunter) (15:56)

It's an honour and a privilege to once again be given the opportunity to stand here in this place representing the good people of the Hunter. Thank you to the people of Cessnock, Singleton, Branxton, Edgeworth, Cameron Park, Dora Creek, Toronto, Morisset, Wangi Wangi and Wyee and the people from all the surrounding areas for putting your trust in me. A very special thank you and welcome to the newest parts of the Hunter electorate: Kurri Kurri, Weston, Abermain and the smaller townships nearby. For the past three years, I've worked my guts out to be the best federal member of parliament for my electorate, and I promise you that this will be the exact same over the next three years. I want to thank you all.

I want to thank all of the incredible volunteers and my fantastic staff and supporters who stood by me during the election campaign. I'm lucky to have such a great team who are passionate, hardworking and always ready to pull up their sleeves. It's fair to say that we have built a Dan army. None of this would be possible without the people behind the scenes who give their time, energy and heart. So, from me and my family to you guys, thank you so much for what you did to help re-elect me to this wonderful place. I can't thank you all enough.

I also wouldn't be able to do this job without the support from my amazing wife, Alex, and my two beautiful daughters, Zoe and Asha. Thank you for all that you deal with and have dealt with over the last three years. I'm sorry for everything that I have missed in the past, and I'm sorry for the things that I will miss in the next three years because of my role. Thank you for your love, your comfort and your patience.

Now I'm going to turn the spotlight on an issue that doesn't get spoken about as much as it should. I want to talk about some facts and figures. They are stark and they are confronting, but they represent an issue that we need to talk about. I want to talk about men's health. Three in four suicides are men. Seven in 10 young people who die are men. Four in every five heart deaths under 65 are men. Men are 50 per cent more likely than women to die from cancer. Seven in 10 alcohol-related deaths are men. Three in four road deaths are men. Ninety-five per cent of workplace deaths are men. Seventy-one per cent of men are overweight or obese. Men are 1.3 times more likely to have type 2 diabetes than women. Over 3,500 men die every year from prostate cancer. To put this in perspective, 50 men die each and every day from avoidable causes.

And what does this all mean? It means that men are dying too young. In fact, we are dying on average five years younger than the amazing women in our lives. But these aren't just numbers or facts written on a piece of paper. Behind every single number is a person: a father, a son, a husband. What these numbers and facts represent is a widespread, undeniable issue facing men of every race, religion and age in every corner of our country. The long and the short of it is that men are dying younger than they need to, and we owe to it each other to find out why. But to do this we need to turn the statistics around, and it all starts with a conversation.

For the first time in this country's history we have a role dedicated towards the health of men, and I am very humbled to have been given this huge responsibility of serving as the first-ever Special Envoy for Men's Health. I am also excited because this role has huge potential to make a real difference in men's health outcomes all around this country. One of the major benefits of this role is the opportunity to get the conversation started. It's about time that this topic has been brought to the floors of this parliament. When 75 per cent of suicides are men and some of our biggest killers, like heart disease, impact men at a massively higher rate than women, it's obvious that these issues need to be addressed and that changes need to be made. The issue of men dying young is an important one, and it deserves a position in this place focused on addressing it. Now we have that, and I'm so proud of the Albanese Labor government that we have now done this. Whether it was me or somebody else—it doesn't matter who it was in this role—I'm just glad that we have a government that is actually talking about this.

There are two equally important parts of men's health: mental health and physical health. When it comes to our mental health, there is one thing that we as men need to get better at, and that's just talking to each other. The sad truth is that most people know a man who has taken his own life. It doesn't need to be this way. Our mental health isn't an easy topic to talk about. I know that, when I get together with my mates, we don't sit around talking about what is causing us stress. Most of us wouldn't even dream of bringing up our feelings or our emotions. But you know what? Maybe we should. We all have stress and pressures in life; it's normal, and it's unavoidable. But, whether it's stress from work or family struggles or just feeling flat for no reason at all, you don't have to carry it alone. Talk to a mate, call your GP, take a break, ask for help and don't wait until you're at breaking point. There's no shame in having a bad day, but there's power in doing something about it. You're not alone, you're not weak and you're not meant to suffer in silence.

I just want to say, to the member for Cowper, you've gone through a massively hard time, and I'm glad you're in the chamber now for us to have this conversation. These are hard, hard things to talk about. So please make sure that you're getting the help that you need along the way as well.

Mr Conaghan: Thank you, mate, and thank you for what you're talking about.

Mr REPACHOLI: No worries. Starting the conversation might just help others that are going through hard times too. Let's make it normal for blokes to talk about what's really going on, because real strength starts upstairs.

As mates, we have a responsibility as well. If you notice something isn't right, please just check in on your mates and have a conversation. If your mate is looking down or if you notice a change in his behaviour, let him know that you're there to offer support and you'll have a conversation any time. You don't have to fix anything; just listening and being there can be all that makes the real difference. It's important to be there for your mates in the good times and the bad. So, if you haven't heard from a mate in a while, give them a call and check in with him.

When it comes to men's physical health, not only is it something we don't talk about; it's often something we don't even think about as men—or as often as we should. Too many of us have the 'she'll be right' kind of attitude, when too often things aren't right. Whether it's our heart health, prostate, testes, bowel cancer, that funny-looking mole that changed colour or even the common cold, we just don't take our physical health seriously. If our car was making a funny noise or something didn't seem right, we'd take it to the mechanic and get it fixed. But, when something doesn't feel right with our health, we ignore it and delay going to the doctor until we're sick of being told to go by our loved ones or until an arm's about to fall off.

There are figures to back this up. When something is not right, 60 per cent of blokes wait more than a week to see a doctor. One in three blokes wait over a month. Please don't wait until the issue gets too big to fix. Get on top of it early.

I know there are some things that us guys may not feel comfortable seeing the doctor or talking to the doctor about. One example of this is prostate cancer. Thousands of men die from this every single year. But if caught early enough it can often be treated successfully. I have no doubt that there are some men out there that aren't too keen on going in for a prostate exam, but it's 2025, gents. The reality is that you no longer need a finger up the anus to get your prostate checked. It can simply be done with a little blood test of your finger. It's amazing the number of things that can be detected by a blood test. So what's stopping you? Remember, there's no more finger; it's a simple little blood test. It takes a couple of minutes, and it could literally save your life. If you're over 50 years old, or over 40 with family history, go have a yarn with your GP. Have the conversation about this, and get it sorted.

Testicular health is another issue that many men do not feel comfortable talking about at all. The most sensitive parts of our bodies can cause us a whole range of issues. It's not only when we've been hit flush by a cricket ball. Testicular cancer is one of the most common forms of cancer among young men in this country. So, if you have a lump on your testes or if something isn't right, please go and see your GP and get it checked.

Erectile dysfunction is another one that blokes don't talk about, that blokes are embarrassed about and that so many men are dealing with right now. Please—if you're having some ED issues, this is not uncommon. This happens to many men, but it can mask so many other things that could be wrong. If you are having some ED issues, please go and see a GP and talk to your pharmacist. Have the conversations and please get the checkups because it is definitely usually masking other issues. Please get out there and have those conversations.

Heart health is another issue that too many of us just don't take seriously. Heart disease is the No. 1 killer of Australian men, especially for blokes over 30 years old, who are most at risk. The catch is you might feel fine right up until you're not. If you want to keep your ticker ticking, go and get a heart health check. They're covered by Medicare. The good news is we have just made these checks free for the next three years. All you need is your Medicare card. There is no treadmill, no stress test and no marathon run involved—just a chat with your GP and a few simple checks to see if you're at risk of having a heart attack or a stroke. It can be covered by just those checks. Over 870,000 Aussies have already done it—200,000 this year alone. That's a lot of dads, brothers and mates who will be around longer because they took 30 minutes out of their day. We men need to stop being weird about seeing a doctor. If something isn't right, don't ignore it and don't try and convince yourself it will go away by itself. An uncomfortable conversation is better than poor health, and it's much better than dying from something that is avoidable. Go in, get the checks, have the tests and stay on top of your health so you can stick around for those who need you most.

It's not only when something doesn't feel right that you should pay a visit to your GP. Sometimes, when we get busy in life, we let our health fall by the wayside and we don't even realise it. Before you know it, it's been five years since you've seen your GP, and you don't even know who he is any more or anyone at the clinic. But there's one easy way that men can keep on top of this, and that's a regular check-up with your doctor. Every time I'm in a room full of blokes I ask the same question: can you put your hand up if you've been to see a GP in the last 12 months and have gotten a blood test? I can tell you not very many hands go up at all. We can fix this. When you go and get your car registered every 12 months, if it gets to the age when it has to get the rego check every 12 months, go and book in while you're sitting there waiting for your rego check to be done. Book in to see your GP while you're there. If you have to put your car in for its 10,000-kilometres service, maybe think about booking then. Or, on your birthday, give yourself a birthday present—and the ones around you a present as well—and book it in. Take five minutes out of your day to call your GP. Because being healthy is the best present you can give yourself and also your loved ones around you. I'll be the first to put my hand up and say I've been guilty of not always going for a check-up in the past. But I'm now making it a habit, and I think every male in this country should as well.

It's only been a short amount of time since the role of Special Envoy for Men's Health was created. But we've hit the ground running, investing $32 million to support men's health and to help encourage men to get the help they need when they need it, whether that be for their mental health or for their physical health. We are delivering $11.3 million to Movember to provide men's health care training to primary health care workers and to develop a campaign to encourage us blokes to go and see the doctor—to make that visit. Training will be based on Movember's existing Men in Mind program for mental health workers and will help around 60,000 doctors and nurses support men to get the health care they need. The remaining $20.7 million of the investment in men's health will go towards grassroots initiatives to support men's health and wellbeing in the community setting, because being part of a community is the best way to help support those around us. Often, these grassroots organisations and events provide support in exactly the kind of intimate and focused setting that is most effective. A total of $8.3 million will go towards supporting another two years of the Men's Shed National Shed Development Program, which provides grants of up to $10,000 for individual men's sheds. It will also support the Australian Men's Shed Association to deliver new health promotions and preventive programs.

I've been lucky enough to visit a lot of men's sheds in the last few months, and I love it. It's one of the favourite parts of my job, not just because I usually get a cracking feed from these guys when I go there but because men's sheds play such an important role in men's health. They provide a space for men to support men and for guys to get together, have a chat, work on some projects and enjoy each other's company. This is the kind of thing that can really make a difference to men's wellbeing. I highly recommend you get out to your local men's shed. Whether you're old or young, get out there and have a chat with them. They are fantastic places to be, and you might even bump into me at one of them.

A total of $7.4 million will go to Movember to expand the successful Ahead of the Game program, which has been delivered in partnership with the AFL. I've played my fair share of footy—and sport in general—and I know what it's like. When your head is in the game, you put on a tough face and nothing can faze you. But that's not always right. The Ahead of the Game program equips boys and young men in a sporting environment with emotional resilience and teaches them to seek help when they need it, which is so important.

We're also delivering $3 million to Healthy Male to support the delivery of their Plus Paternal project, a program helping men prepare for fatherhood through development of good parenting skills before birth. I was lucky enough to meet with the good people at Healthy Male earlier in the year, and they are really doing some amazing work. Two million dollars are going to the Black Dog Institute to research mental health and suicide prevention at the Danny Frawley Centre for Health and Wellbeing. Funding is also supporting St Kilda Football Club's annual Spud's Game at the MCG, which raises community awareness to fight men's mental ill-health. This investment is only the first step in supporting men's health. I can't wait to continue working with the health team and Minister Butler to keep making progress when it comes to supporting blokes by closing the gaps that too many men and boys are falling through.

There are a stack of incredible organisations doing things for men's health. I've been lucky enough to meet so many of them, including the Men's Shed, the Man Cave, Movember, Healthy Male, TradeMutt, TIACS, Talk2meBro, the Top Blokes Foundation and the Men's Health Education Rural Van, commonly referred to as MHERV, run by Rotary. They're all doing their bit to address the many different issues that we face as men, and I'm looking forward to doing my bit too. I'm committed to working closely with the experts, advocates and everyday Aussie blokes and women to find out what we can do to ensure that all fellas—big or small, old or young and bearded, moustached or clean-shaven—are as healthy as they possibly can be. We need real conversations, real resources and real results. I'm looking forward to the challenge.

I want to make one last important point. This is not a political issue. There is nothing divisive about addressing men's health, so I hope that we can come together in this place—in this most amazing building in Canberra, where we really do the best for Australians—regardless of what side of the chamber we sit on, and stand tall, as one, for men's health. Together, let's get this conversation started. Let's make a difference. To all the men around Australia: let's look after our physical and mental health, talk to our mates and go and see our GPs. Get a check-up. Chat to your pharmacist. Actually listen to your wives, actually listen to your kids and actually listen to the people in your life that you love, that you care for the most. Talk to them. Listen to them. If they're telling you to go and see a GP or you need a hand here or there—or even if they're just asking if you're feeling okay—don't hold it in. If you aren't feeling okay, have the conversation. There is always going to be somebody that can listen to you and that will want to listen to you. We can't continue to go through those horrendous statistics that I spoke about earlier. We need to see more amazing men in this country and we need to see more amazing women in this country, because, when men and women are both healthy, we have a healthy generation, a healthy population and healthy communities. So, please make sure you're reaching out and getting the help you need along the way. We're here, as a government, to help you along the way as well.

The DEPUTY SPEAKER ( Mr Wilkie ): I thank the member for Hunter for his valuable contribution. Your description of one of the means of prostate testing did have me wondering whether you'd used unparliamentary language, but I will let it stand. It worked in the circumstances.