Last week was ‘Time to Talk’ week run by Mind and Rethink as part of their campaign to end mental health stigma.
The Time to Talk campaign encouraged everyone to take 5 minutes to have a conversation about mental health.
Ordinary people are the drivers for change – and telling people how you feel, or listening to someone, can make a huge difference.
Mental health is too important to fall off the agenda. One in four will have a mental health condition at some point in our lives – so all of us will know someone affected.
The most recent statistics for Haringey show over 8,000 people have been diagnosed with depression. The real figure is likely to be much higher.
For decades mental health was pushed aside in favour of physical health. Successive governments let the stigma continue, and none of them tried to break down the barriers to treatment.
When the Lib Dems entered Government, we were determined to change this. We’re providing £400 million more for talking therapies, £54 million for children’s mental health, and £1.2 million in staff training.
Perhaps most importantly we’re introducing ‘parity of esteem’ for mental health. This means that mental health must now be given the same priority – fixed waiting times etc – as physical health.
The stigma around mental health must end, and that’s why the Lib Dems in Government will always make sure that mental health is given the attention it deserves.
Lynne Featherstone 