Now, the petition talks about the need to increase funding for mental health issues, and I'm really pleased to report that, in terms of funding in the next financial year, we've secured a further £42 million to support mental health services. This should, however, be seen within the context of the £780 million that we spend annually on mental health services, and I've started some detailed research to make sure that we're spending that larger amount on the appropriate things.

We also need to make sure that the funding we put in is making a difference to patients, so we must be careful not to focus just on how much we put in to support mental health, but to make sure that we keep an eye on the outcomes we're seeing as a result of that investment. I've been clear that I'd like to see a greater shift in resources towards prevention and earlier, often non-medicalised mental health support, and refocus that towards the needs of children and young people, where 80 per cent of mental health issues start.

Now, the petitioner also talks about people needing mental health support in a crisis, and I'm sure the Petitions Committee is aware of the report that was published earlier this year by the national crisis care concordat group, which analysed what the demand looks like for mental health crisis care. They found that 950 people a day in Wales seek support from the public sector for mental health or welfare concerns, and about 300 of those are for emergencies. The problem is that the current structure that supports these is often emergency services, which, despite a huge training initiative undertaken by the police and ambulance services, don't always have the knowledge or expertise to respond to the specific mental health situation. And that's why we've earmarked an additional £6 million to address this issue, which needs urgent attention, in particular when it comes to out-of-hours support.

But if people find they're in a crisis, it means that there's been a failure in the system earlier on. When it comes to mental health, early intervention is absolutely key, and I'm clear that this absolutely doesn't mean that it always has to be a medical intervention. This morning, I spoke to the Wales Alliance for Mental Health, including Mind, to understand and agree that there is a need to respond to the social and economic issues that can cause mental health issues, and which are likely to become more visible as we come out of lockdown. And that's why I've earmarked an additional £4 million to increase our capacity to deliver more timely early intervention, where people don't need to be referred into that service via a GP, and a service that can be delivered outside of the health service by specialist third sector groups. So, the aim is to ensure that there's easy access to a range of help for low-level mental health issues across Wales, and build on that support that we've already put in place during the pandemic, including cognitive behavioural therapy online.

Now, if we get this early intervention right, we'll avoid the crisis care later that would be necessary. And it's really important in order to respond to the changing needs of the population in a period where there's been a societal trauma event, where it's clear that there are raised levels of anxiety in our population.

Writing a programme and ensuring buy-in is difficult, and that's what we've tried to do with 'Together for Mental Health', but making sure that those partners help us deliver on that and that we have a responsibility is actually a greater challenge. And in order to hit the targets we've set out in our strategy, I've established a new mental health ministerial delivery and oversight board in Wales, and that board met for the first time last week. And whilst I understand the pressure on the system, I am absolutely clear about my commitment to drive progress on work relating to mental health. So, I hope that what I've said today provides an assurance about our commitment to changing mental health needs, supported by additional, significant funding.

I'd like to thank the people who presented this issue to the Senedd and for drawing attention to this important issue. I hope you'll agree that we've delivered on the request for more funding and we are putting very clear measures in place to improve waiting times for people in crisis. Diolch.