Press release

World Mental Health Day: Nick Clegg message

A message from the Deputy Prime Minister to mark World Mental Health Day.

This was published under the 2010 to 2015 Conservative and Liberal Democrat coalition government

皇冠体育app Deputy Prime Minister held a reception to mark World Mental Health Day on 10 October 2014.

皇冠体育app Deputy Prime Minister said:

It鈥檚 astounding that, in this day and age, when millions of us spend so much time blogging, tweeting and updating our Facebook status, there鈥檚 still one issue that we all hesitate to talk about 鈥� our mental health.

This is despite the fact that 1 in 4 of us will experience a mental health condition each year. We鈥檙e talking about people from every walk of life: mums, dads, sisters, brothers, pensioners, and teenagers鈥� the list goes on.

If we broke an arm or a leg, we鈥檇 happily chat to our family, friends and work colleagues about the pain, inconvenience and treatment involved. But substitute that broken bone for anxiety or depression and, because of the stigma still associated with mental health, it鈥檚 harder for many to find the right words.

This World Mental Health Day, you can help us change that.

In this coalition government, the Liberal Democrats have worked hard to close the gap between the treatment of physical health and mental health in the NHS: increasing access to talking therapies for those who need them; transforming the help children can get as they move into adulthood; and now, for the first-time ever, introducing NHS waiting time standards for mental health conditions, alongside investing 拢120 million to improve services.

But you don鈥檛 need to be a health expert or politician to do your bit. A quick chat over a cup of tea, a supportive text or phone call or a friendly word to ask if everything鈥檚 okay 鈥� today, all these things could make a massive difference.

So, if you know someone struggling with a mental health problem, pop on the kettle or pick up your phone now 鈥� let鈥檚 give them the support they need to live the life they want.

You can find further information and advice to help you at:

It鈥檚 time for all of us to talk about mental health.

Updates to this page

Published 10 October 2014
Last updated 14 October 2014 show all updates
  1. Link added to photos from Deputy Prime Minister's reception to mark World Mental Health Day.

  2. First published.