Lib Dems criticise mental health services

The Liberal Democrats have slammed the state of mental health wards in the UK and the "disgraceful lack of access" to services.

Lib Dem health spokesman Norman Lamb told delegates at the party's autumn party conference in Bournemouth on Thursday that "mental health has long been one of the most neglected services in the NHS".

And the party proposed to end mixed sex wards in mental health units, while prohibiting young people under 18 from being put in adult wards.
 
Lamb said: "It is a condition that touches every family – one in four of us will suffer mental health problems in our lifetime.

"Only the Liberal Democrats will transform mental health services, with faster access, safer wards and genuine equality of treatment.
 
"Mental health must no longer be this country's Cinderella service," he concluded.

Other measures proposed by the Liberal Democrats include applying the mental health guarantee standard to prisoners who are mentally ill, and enabling services other than those offered by the NHS to be made available should long delays be experienced by the patient.

An amendment proposed by MP Evan Harris was supported by the conference, which aims to impose a three-month time limit on waiting for NHS mental health treatment before private alternatives are offered.