If you don’t live in the UK, then this post will may not be of any interest to you, sorry.
To those in the UK, July 4th is election time. Unlike in the U.S.A, I doubt it will be our Independence Day from Government inefficiency, we’ll just be replacing one bunch of career chancers with another. It’s expected that Labour will win this time. Not because they’re the best, just that there’s no one else, other than the current bunch of Conservative fools.
Which, when you think about a country with a long history of democracy, is a depressing state of affairs; choose between two piles of rubbish – one blue and one red…
Anyway, not getting too political, I thought I’d analyse what the main parties have to say on how they will reform mental health support. I decided, after some debate, to look at three – Conservative, Labour and the new kid on the block, Reform UK. I didn’t look at Green or any of the others as they’ve really no chance of getting anywhere near Government this election. Plus, this is my blog and I wanted to analyse the three parties that I might vote for.
The Search begins.
To begin my search, I looked at the manifesto for the current bunch of chancers – The Conservative and Unionist Party.
Their manifesto is a huge eighty pages of flag waving glory! Finding their pledges on mental health wasn’t easy and come down to two paragraphs. One on page forty-three. The other on forty-four. However, they were the best of the three when it came to specifics.
The first was this.
“We know that, for most people, poor health comes from living with one or more of six major health conditions: cancer, heart disease, musculoskeletal disorders, mental ill-health, dementia and respiratory disease. We will publish and implement a Major Conditions Strategy to prevent these conditions from occurring and ensure those living with them receive the best possible care”
Now, not specifically about mental health, but at least it’s in there as a consideration. The second mention was better.
“Improving mental health support. Mental health should have parity of esteem with physical health. To support children, young people and adults with their mental health, we will:
Expand coverage of Mental Health Support Teams from 50% to 100% of schools and colleges in England by 2030.
Open early support hubs for those aged 11-25 in every local community by 2030.
Increase the planned expansion of NHS Talking Therapies by 50%, supporting people with anxiety, stress and depression.
Boost the capacity of Individual Placement and Support for Severe Mental Illness by 140,000 places.
Pass a new law to provide better treatment and support for severe mental health needs in the first session of the next Parliament.”
Some nice, bold promises. Full mental health support in schools would be awesome. Increasing talking therapy by 50% is a good start. Increasing places for those in crisis by 140,000, fantastic!
All the promises are things we need, especially after years of neglect.
However, I do wonder why, after fourteen years in Government, the Conservatives haven’t done this already.
Next, Labour.
Their manifesto was equally as huge. Dedicated, in the main, to bashing the Conservatives. Which I would expect from any serious opposition party. And let’s face it, there’s plenty to aim at!
However, woolly would be an understatement on their pledges. No figures and the only references I could find were this.
“As part of our mission to reduce the lives lost to suicide, these new staff will be specially trained to support people at risk. Labour’s new Young Futures hubs will provide open access mental health services for children and young people in every community.
Mental health legislation is also woefully out of date. The treatment of people with autism and learning difficulties is a disgrace. The operation of the Mental Health Act discriminates against Black people who are much more likely to be detained than others. Labour will modernise legislation to give patients greater choice, autonomy, enhanced rights and support, and ensure everyone is treated with dignity and respect throughout treatment.”
As you can see, nothing specific. Just words that point towards making things better. Oh, and a dose of the politics of division; saying the mental health act discriminates against black people. Not, researching into WHY more black people are detained, just change the act so we don’t have to solve the problem!
Finally, Reform UK.
The new party on the block only has a document that promises what they will achieve in their first 100 days. Which, I thought, was good as they were at least promising something, if you can believe a politician that is.
Depressingly, I could find no direct promise for action on mental health, none. Short of an NHS voucher system to go private if you can’t see a GP within 3 days or a hospital in 3 weeks. Not sure how that would relate to mental health care, unless you could use it to see a private therapist. However, for GP’s etc, it sounded okay.
My Summary.
Conservatives – promise to do things they could have done over the last fourteen years, but only promising now they need your vote! I’m not sure I believe they’ll achieve it, or even try.
Labour – Similar promises to the Conservatives if you use some mental agility and fill in the gaps. But no direct plan on how they will achieve it. Just that we must believe them. (I remember the last Labour Government, so not holding out hope)
Reform UK – Who knows? I certainly don’t feel confident after searching their site. Please, if you can find something then let me know!
So, to be honest, quite disheartening for those of us in the UK who have mental health needs. I feel we are in for much of the same neglect in coming years.
Some research.
Now, I know people will slate the Conservatives and their NHS cuts, so I did some research to see how the population had increased over the last twenty-years, and the numbers of acute mental health beds. I know it’s not full data analysis, considering funding, care in the community etc. I just wanted to see how many beds were available during the last years of Labour Government and the Conservatives.
Due to my poor Excel skills I produced two graphs, one charting population , the other looking at acutal mental health beds per million population.
The figures were depressing….
Data extracted from here. (Google)
Data extrapolated from Statista.com.
So, the rot clearly started under Labour and seems to coincide with open borders and has carried on with the Conservatives. Can we trust either party anymore? I don’t know.
My manifesto.
What would I want to see, should an act of God make me Prime Minister.
- Better access to primary care – more early intervention when mental health issues strike. A legal, mandatory minimum time to wait for help before you can go private. I’m talking days, not weeks.
- More talking therapies and other therapies. Less reliance on drugs as a crutch to prop up a failing system.
- Mental health wellness centres, similar the old mental hospitals, but more like the recovery centres that people used to use to recover from TB in the days before penicillin. A focus on rest and recovery – not detaining.
- Training for the Police and other Emergency services on how to help someone in crisis, as well as more funding for crisis teams when an emergency hits.
- A focus, in schools at equipping children on how to deal with the challenges that life throws at you.
I’m sure I can think of more, but they’re my main ones.
I’m hoping for change, but doubt I’ll see it. Too many years listening to politician’s double speak I suppose.
Here’s hoping for a better future.
Steve