Part of the debate – in the Senedd at 6:39 pm on 14 February 2018.
Diolch, Dirprwy Lywydd. Can I thank everyone who's contributed to today's thought-provoking debate? You were all great. You all raised many issues of importance. Can I also say, first, in response to the Cabinet Secretary's comments, that I'm pleased that you are going to be supporting today's motion? It has been tabled in a constructive way and one in which we really hope to move the debate on. I hope, in looking at how you can address some of these issues, you look at some global examples as well, because I think there's a lot of good practice out there.
I can't mention everyone's comments today, but I will touch on a few of the speakers. First of all, in opening, Angela Burns spoke of the importance of removing the stigma surrounding mental health. That's such an important point, and you were right to say that AMs here who have spoken about their experience have been key to getting rid of that stigma and moving this debate on in the past, and that deserves to be commended. You also spoke about the suicide statistics, which I think I will take away from this debate as being shocking. That is something that, when this system fails, when things go wrong, that is what you're looking at at the end of this—you're looking at the loss of life and that needs to be dealt with in the way that you spoke of.
That's where Paul Davies came in, because I attended the DPJ Foundation event that Paul hosted yesterday, I think it was—time flies by. It was fascinating listening to the experiences that people have gone through—they themselves have gone through the issues and their families have gone through the issues of dealing with suicide. You did a great job yesterday, Paul. Keep up the good work, and DPJ Foundation need to keep up the good work as well, because it's really important.
Lynne Neagle, you identified the need for a step change in addressing these issues and you spoke about curriculum change bringing health and social services together. In fact, you made a point that was later made by the Cabinet Secretary that this is a cross-cutting issue; it touches on all aspects of life and all aspects that Government deals with. So, it's not a question of putting this in one silo and dealing with it there, we do need a truly joined-up approach. Darren Millar spoke of the need to support veterans who are suffering from mental health issues.
David Melding, you mentioned Jonathan Morgan, as did Dai Lloyd, and yes, he did a lot to move this issue on. Thinking back, I think he was the first person to bring a Measure—the mental health Measure—to this Chamber, which was later adopted by the Welsh Government. He's not in the Chamber today—well, not in body, anyway—but in spirit, he has been invoked, so I hope he's watching this debate and will appreciate that we appreciate what he did.
Can I say in closing, Dirprwy Lywydd, that I'd like to reiterate Angela's key call, actually, in her contribution, when she said that we call on the Welsh Government to introduce a target for all people to be able to access psychological therapies within 28 days? That's a really important call. Hopefully, if we can't achieve other things, we can achieve that, Cabinet Secretary, and we can ensure that those therapies, that treatment is there when people need it.
Very finally, the Time to Change Wales campaign has been mentioned by a number of Assembly Members. Bev Jones who helps run that campaign and set it up lives near me, in my village, so I know Bev very well, and I know just how dedicated she is to the cause of mental health and how pleased she is that we're having this debate today.
The statistics say it all. Most of us, all of us, will either have a mental health issue during our lives or we will be affected by it in some way through our friends and families. So, I'm glad you're supporting this debate. I urge everyone to vote for this motion today, and let's get on with the job of changing Wales, because that time has come.