While the Tory government all but ignores mental health, Wales is leading the way for young people

During the Covid-19 crisis, the Tory government has wilfully ignored requests for a focus on mental health. It is high time the UK government followed the Welsh parliament’s example

Rosena Allin-Khan and Vaughan Gething outside the Welsh parliament

It has been four months since our lives were turned upside down. Everyone across the UK has felt the effects of Covid-19 – some have experienced this cruel virus first-hand, others have been left heartbroken following the loss of those closest to them, and many more have had to contend with putting themselves in harm’s way to carry out their jobs for the good of the country.

The hidden effect of all of this is the strain that is being placed on everyone’s mental health. People are resilient, but there has been a lot of change to contend with in a very short space of time. Across the UK, not everyone has had the same support open to them – and that lies at the feet of the Tory government.

Visiting Tiger Bay Boxing Club in Cardiff yesterday, I was pleased to meet mental health trailblazers, focusing on training and mentorship as a route to good mental health among vulnerable children and young people. There are fantastic community initiatives across the country – but in Wales, they have the support of the Welsh government. It’s an entirely different story there: people’s mental health and wellbeing are made a priority.

During the Covid-19 crisis, the Tory government has wilfully ignored our requests for a focus on mental health. Matt Hancock, the health secretary, and Nadine Dorries, the mental health minister, even refused to meet to discuss Labour’s Care for Carers proposal, which would ensure that all health and care workers would have access to tailored mental health support – a vital resource, given the sacrifices they have made over the last four months.

Frontline health and care staff have been in an unenviable position: they have been redeployed to other departments, are scared of going to work, and have lost patients as well as colleagues. That the Welsh government has acted in response to this and has ensured that frontline staff can access mental health support needs not only to be celebrated but also to be emulated by the UK government.

Let’s not forget that our frontline staff do not have the opportunity to simply “take a break”. Waiting lists are building up and winter pressures will have an impact like never before. There’s a sense of nervousness on the front line of what is yet to come.

It’s not just our frontline health staff that need our support, however. Each segment of society is facing unique pressures. That fact makes it increasingly more frustrating to see the government announcing more “one size fits all” approaches.

Rosena Allin-Khan with Vaughan Gething, second from left, on a trip to Tiger Bay Boxing Club in Cardiff

There is a generation of young people facing challenges that would have been unimaginable just a few months ago. Even before Covid-19, the pressure placed on our young people in an ever-changing world, with success unfortunately measured mostly by exam results, placed an enormous strain on their mental health. This is why it is so refreshing to see that the Welsh government listened to them and introduced the Young Person’s Mental Health Toolkit to support young people’s mental health during the pandemic. It is imperative that our youth are given the opportunity to become comfortable speaking about their mental health. We all have a duty to remove the stigma attached to mental ill-health.

Boxing clubs, such as Tiger Bay, have been offering mentorship and support to vulnerable young people for decades; it’s why I love it and continue to train at my local club. Boxing is far more than just a sport; for many, it’s family. Clubs offer an opportunity for young people to make friends, engage with sport and receive mentorship. Now more than ever, when for many their future seems so uncertain, that sense of belonging is vital.

It is high time that the UK government followed the lead of the Welsh government and gave mental health the attention and support it needs.

Rosena Allin-Khan is Labour MP for Tooting and shadow cabinet member for mental health