Meeting of the Parliament 06 January 2015
I made the point that I expect all health boards to achieve the target this year. That is my expectation. We set the target for a reason and we expect the health boards to achieve it.
I had begun to say that we have not only increased the number of people who are employed in the area but invested almost £17 million since 2009 to deliver faster access to child and adolescent mental health services in Scotland’s communities. That spending comes as part of increased expenditure on mental health, which went up by £31.9 million from £867.1 million in 2010-11 to £899 million in 2012-13, and we are investing an additional £15 million over the next three years to improve mental health services in particular.
Ensuring the prompt treatment of people is a key priority for improving Scotland’s mental health. What we know to be true of physical illness—that the sooner treatment begins, the sooner a person can recover—is invariably true of mental illness. Of course, the more we do, the more clearly we see how much more we still need to do.
I am glad that the Parliament has welcomed in 2015 with the mental health of all at its heart, and I ask all members to think about the right way forward.
I move,
That the Parliament welcomes the level of interest and commitment to improving mental health and mental health services; recognises the equal importance that the NHS places on the care and treatment of mental and physical illness; notes the Scottish Government’s recent announcement of an additional £15 million investment in mental health services, and looks forward to further progress in improving mental health and wellbeing as a fundamental and integral part of delivering person-centred, safe and effective healthcare services.
16:20