6. Debate on the Health, Social Care and Sport report: Inquiry into the impact of the Covid-19 outbreak, and its management, on health and social care in Wales: Report 2 — Impact on mental health and wellbeing

Part of the debate – in the Senedd at 4:26 pm on 3 March 2021.

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Photo of David Lloyd David Lloyd Plaid Cymru 4:26, 3 March 2021

(Translated)

Thank you very much, Dirprwy Lywydd. We've had an excellent debate. I, like others have suggested, would've liked to have seen the debate scheduled for longer, but we are where we are, as they say. This is a very detailed report; a great deal of work went into it, as well as the other reports that we referred to—the previous reports of the health committee on suicide prevention and, of course, the excellent reports by the Children, Young People and Education Committee under the excellent chairing of Lynne Neagle. I would like to pay tribute to the work of Lynne Neagle, as the Chair of that committee. The collaboration has been excellent and I think both committees have been able to achieve so much more, in working together, than they could've done alone in the same areas, but with different age groups. Because it wasn't possible, on most occasions, for the health committee to undertake work related to children and young people, but it was important that that was done, and I'm hugely grateful to Lynne Neagle and her committee for that.

Of course, the mental health challenge as a result of this pandemic is a huge one—we understand that. But we need to emphasise it, because we haven't seen the half of it to date. In addition to that, there is a level of anxiety that occurs naturally in any society that emerges from some mass emergency. We have seen that occurring and it is still happening. Obviously, there would be a level of anxiety in any individual, which wouldn't necessarily have an impact on mental health, but it does need to be dealt with, and the natural way of doing that, as others have said—and thank you to David Melding for his mature and dignified contribution in terms of looking in broader terms at public health in terms of physical activity and so on—is to deal with that level of anxiety that doesn't fall within the definition of 'mental health problems'. Everyone feels that. I thank Rhun ap Iorwerth too for his wise words, as usual, and for his support as a member of the committee.

To conclude, I'm grateful to the Minister, Eluned Morgan, for her contribution and for her wisdom in responding in such a meaningful way to our recommendations. I also have to say that I welcome her appointment in the first instance, which is a reflection of the importance of this agenda. It's important that we tackle all of the challenges. May I conclude by thanking our clerks and researchers for their unstinting work on all occasions? The conclusions are there from our previous reports as a committee, as well as Lynne Neagle's committee's reports, and we must address them. Thank you very much. Support the motion.