We are failing to confront a national tragedy. More than 3000 people, eight in 10 of them men, are dying by suicide each year, more than double the number of deaths on our roads.

That is as many as nine needless deaths every day. There are a further 180 suicide attempts each day. It is the leading cause of death for people aged between 15 and 44. It accounts for one-third of deaths among people aged 15 to 24, and more than a quarter of deaths among those aged 25 to 34.

Each of us can play a role in preventing suicide.

For a long time, there was a predominant view that publicly discussing suicide is dangerous, because it might trigger attempts. Research shows that is not the case. We have a duty as a community to understand what is going on, so that we might help reduce this terrible toll. And our government has a duty to do far more; resources for prevention need to be significantly augmented, and policy needs to be co-ordinated across all government departments that deal with people in difficulty.

Australia has a formidable record of public awareness campaigns – countless lives have, for example, been saved by reducing smoking, by slashing the incidence of HIV/AIDS, by reducing drink-driving. But, astoundingly, Australia is the only English-speaking nation that has not instigated a public education campaign about suicide. That should change. Last year, Lifeline, the crisis support service, described the situation as "a national emergency". There is a policy imbalance. Imagine the outcry were terrorist attacks taking so many lives.