Mental Health Carers Statement House of Representatives Inquiry into Recognition of Unpaid Carers The peak body for mental health carers in Queensland, Arafmi, welcomes the release of the final report of the House of Representatives Inquiry into the Recognition of Unpaid Carers. Arafmi would like to thank the committee members for their genuine commitment to examining this issue, and in particular extend our condolences to the family, friends and colleagues of former Committee Chair, the late Peta Murphy MP, who led the inquiry until her passing in December 2023. Unpaid Mental Health carers, most often family and friends, need both better recognition and rights, which officially establish them as a crucial part of the recovery of the people experiencing mental ill-health whom they care for. If adopted, the recommendations in this report will go some way to establishing official recognition of unpaid carers, and their rights, including the right to be provided information about the person they care for in order to provide care. Arafmi supports recommendations to specifically recognise unpaid carers in First Nations communities and among people with culturally and linguistically diverse connections, young carers and LGBTIQA+ carers. Importantly, carers often require their own support, and this report
