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June 21, 2003
The Hutt Street Centre does a stirling job in looking after the homeless and disadvantaged in Adelaide. The homeless come to the Centre for a feed and a shower. The staff at the Centre see around 200 hundred a day, many of whom have mental health problems.
Increased numbers of homeless people with mental health problems exist because of the de-intitutionlization of the big mental hospitals. But no money has been put into the community to provide services for mental health. The Centre does its best with its two social workers seeing mental health clients; but the Centre is given little assistance from the state bureaucracy.
The Rann Government said no no no to money for the homeless. Treasurer Foley took great satisfaction in preparing a economcially reponsible budget. What happened to the Labor compassion? Fogotten. The welfare state has turned a blind eye.
So what happens to the homeless? The police become involved, that's what. Why? Because of the homeless with mental health problems commiting minor offences. So without institutional support mental health is transformed into a law and order issue. The courts direct the lost souls into special programs but these cannot cope with the overload.
And that much heralded Social Inclusion Unit of the Rann Government. This was the sign of Labor compassion in a government thats tough and hard on law and order and obssessed with a budget surplus? What is the Social Inclusion Unit doing? Nothing.
So much for Labor compassion.
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