PMQs: Clegg challenges Brown over mental health services

12.00.00am UTC (GMT +0000) Fri 29th Feb 2008

Nick Clegg questions the Government's "half measures" on mental health

Liberal Democrat leader Nick Clegg focused on mental health services, accusing the Government of wasting money on drugs and not doing enough to give people access to therapists. He accused the government of taking "half measures" on mental health when some people waited three and half years to see a therapist.

Mr. Clegg: "The NHS spends more than £300 million a year on anti-depressant drugs, which we learned yesterday probably do not help many of the people taking them. Is it not time the Prime Minister developed a mental health strategy that helps patients rather than pouring millions of pounds into the pockets of the pharmaceutical industry for drugs that do not even work?"

Gordon Brown: "First of all, I say to the right hon. Gentleman: welcome back. I hope that this time he can stay long enough to hear the answers. The right hon. Gentleman is absolutely right that we should do more so that people are not dependent on the drugs that he is talking about. That is precisely why the Secretary of State for Health is investing in providing more therapists to help people. We have made a decision to employ 3,600 more, and I hope that the right hon. Gentleman will support that."

Mr. Clegg: "On the issue of mental health, has the Prime Minister forgotten what his own expert, Lord Layard said? He said that we need an additional 10,000 therapists, not the 3,000 that the Prime Minister is talking about. Why is he taking half measures when we have the scandal of some patients waiting up to three and a half years just to see a therapist?"

Gordon Brown: "Lord Layard has said that he supports the policy we are putting forward. That policy will receive the support of £173 million, to invest in the psychological help that people can give. We are looking at piloting some of Lord Layard's proposals on how we can help people get into work, so we are doing exactly what the right hon. Gentleman is asking us to do."