April 18, 2005
by Angela Hussain

None of the three main political parties have drawn up specific mental health policies in their election manifestos.

This is despite the Labour government's draft mental health bill sparking controversy and widespread media coverage.

The Royal College of Psychiatrists has, nevertheless, drawn up a list of 10 mental health policy questions for people to put to their parliamentary candidates ahead of the May 5 general election.

These include questions on how their party is combating the stigma of people having mental health problems, how their party is reducing disability discrimination for people with mental health problems, and how their party would push mental health up the political agenda.

On generic health policy the three main parties - as well as the Scottish National Party - are battling it out on issues of hospital cleanliness, patient choice, spending and waiting lists.

All parties accept spending across all health services - and by implication mental health services - must grow but they disagree about central control and the private sector.

Labour is pressing on with its plans to reform the 1983 mental health act, as outlined in a draft mental health bill. They say new mental health law is needed to better protect the public from violent people with mental health problems.

While the Conservatives and Liberal Democrats are critical of many aspects of the bill they have also stated that they would bring in a new mental health act

At a Conservative mental health summit in 2003 the shadow health secretary Dr Liam Fox said that he believes too many people diagnosed with mental illness are being treated inappropriately in the community.

He said the care in the community policy - introduced by the Tories - has gone too far and is a threat to patients and the public.

Dr Fox said: "Care in the community has been discredited in the public mind by a series of crimes committed by the mentally ill who had fallen between the gaps or come off their medication.

"The pendulum has swung too far and too fast.

"We need a new balance to be struck which ensures the most appropriate treatment and environment for patients - a balance where those that need treatment in a hospital setting receive it and only those able to cope in the community are placed there."

The Liberal Democrats' shadow health secretary Paul Burstow has said the draft mental health bill should be "sent back to the drawing board."

He said last month: "A new mental health act is desperately needed, but it must be a law to protect and improve services for patients, not a means to demonise those with mental health problems."

Conservatives 2005 election manifesto
Labour 2005 election manifesto
Liberal Democrats 2005 election manifesto
Scottish National Party 2005 election manifesto

The Royal College of Psychiatrist's list of 10 questions to parliamentary candidates.

See also:
March 29, 2005: Government again under fire over plans to change mental health law - parliamentary committee warns that planned legislation would erode civil liberties
Feb 7, 2005:Government should rip up draft mental health bill plans, doctors group urges - British Medical Association tells parliamentary committee the bill is "unethical, and unworkable"
Nov 16, 2004: Draft mental health bill risks breaching rights of patients and would be unworkable - parliamentary committee hears

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