Abbott unveils mental health plan

A coalition government would establish a mental health commission and spend more than $300 million on helping the mentally ill return to work.

Federal Opposition Leader Tony Abbott has unveiled the details of the coalition's $430 million mental health plan, boosting dedicated funding to almost $2 billion.

He says the coalition would also spend $40 million on a national mental health research centre.

The plan's been outlined three weeks ahead of the budget, as speculation builds that Labor will have a major mental health announcement of its own on May 10.