Children and Young People’s Mental Health — [Sir Gary Streeter in the Chair]

Part of the debate – in Westminster Hall at 3:58 pm on 16 June 2021.

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Photo of Munira Wilson Munira Wilson Liberal Democrat Spokesperson (Health and Social Care) 3:58, 16 June 2021

I thank all hon. Members who contributed in such a knowledgeable and passionate way to this debate. I hope the Minister has seen that there is cross-party support for greater support for and investment in mental health services. I recognise that the Government have put more money in, but one of the themes has been whether it is getting through to the local level and the frontline. That is why my hon. Friend Wera Hobhouse and I keep picking up the point about data, and Anne Marie Morris did the same. I am grateful to hon. Members for picking up points that I was not able to cover, such as the baby blind spot, eating disorders and disabled children. There are so many issues; this is multifaceted.

The Minister talked about definitions and said that we are conflating mental health and wellbeing, but it is all part of a continuum. That is why it is so important, as part of the prevention agenda, to focus on wellbeing as much as the serious mental health concerns. That is why I was trying to cover that vast spectrum in my speech. I reiterate that I stand ready to work with the Minister.

Jim Shannon quoted JFK. Well, I will quote Mandela back at him:

“There can be no keener revelation of a society’s soul than the way it treats its children.”

Motion lapsed (Standing Order No. 10(6)).

Sitting suspended.