THE Scottish Government has been warned a failure to increase the mental health budget will result in “severe consequences”.
A partnership of 17 mental health bodies and third-sector organisations has called into question the decision not to increase the sector’s budget for the 2023/24 financial year.
Deputy First Minister John Swinney announced last week that mental health funding will be frozen at £290.2 million for the upcoming year.
But experts warned Swinney, who is acting Finance Secretary, that the allocation would be a “real-terms” pay cut amid soaring inflation and increasing demand for mental health support.
Scotland’s Mental Health Partnership has said a minimum increase of 6.2% is required to help the struggling sector.
Lee Knifton, chair of Scotland’s Mental Health Partnership, said: “We are dismayed at this failure to increase the mental health budget.
“We are seeing people struggling with the cost-of-living crisis, leading to vastly increased numbers seeking support.
“Waiting lists are lengthy and both statutory services and voluntary organisations are under extreme pressure.
“We are calling on the Scottish Government to reconsider and to increase the mental health budget by at least 6.2% in line with overall health and social care spending.
“If this doesn’t happen, mental health will fall further behind, leading to severe consequences for the people of Scotland.”
The calls from Scotland’s Mental Health Partnership follow concerns from the Royal College of Psychiatrists (RCP) in Scotland which said the country faces a “mental health catastrophe” if the budget allocation is not reconsidered.
The RCP Scotland, which is part of the partnership, said the governing parties, the SNP and Greens, had rolled back on manifesto pledges of a 10% uplift in mental health funding.
Other members of the partnership include Samaritans, Scottish Association for Mental Health (SAMH) and the Mental Health Foundation.
