Scottish Liberal Democrats demand action on mental health

To mark the beginning of Mental Health Awareness Week, Scottish Liberal Democrats have set out plans to strengthen funding for mental health services, cut waiting times in half and rollout mental health professionals to work alongside GPs, police and in A&E departments.  

The SNP-Green Government slashed £50 million from the mental health budget over winter. The impact of this includes pausing the commitment in the 2021/22 Programme for Government to recruit an additional 1,000 staff - a promise that has yet to deliver a single extra mental health professional.

The Scottish Liberal Democrats’ Mental Health Plan includes:

• Increasing the number of training places for psychiatrists and clinical psychologists, and boosting the number of mental health professionals working alongside GPs, the police and A&E departments
• Ramping up training so that every workplace can benefit from a mental health first aider  
• Establishing a single point of contact for those on waiting lists
• Creating new dedicated specialist mental health beds for children and young people north of Dundee, and beds for new mothers north of Livingston to end long journeys for specialist care
• A new ambition to cut routine mental health waiting times in half, to be triggered once current targets are met.  
• The appointment of a dedicated Mental Health Minister to champion the issue at the top of government.

Mr Cole-Hamilton said:    

“For too long, the government has been all fanfare and no focus when it comes to mental health.    

“The First Minister and former Health Secretary personally promised to clear the atrocious mental health waiting lists by March 2023, but that has come and gone.    

“Liberal Democrats would create a properly funded, world-leading system to tackle Scotland’s mental health emergency.”  

Scottish Liberal Democrat mental health spokesperson Sally Pattle added:   

“Despite the long shadow of lockdown, a brutal cost of living and spiralling waiting lists, this government has only offered budget cuts and empty platitudes to tackle the mental health crisis.    

“This year’s Mental Health Awareness Week is a chance for the SNP and Greens to finally change tack and turn words into action.  

“From halving waiting times to rolling out more mental health professionals across a variety of settings, Scottish Liberal Democrat plans would radically drive-up care standards and ensure comprehensive access to treatment across the country.”