In the Senedd today (19/03/2024), Joel James MS questioned Labour’s Minister for Mental Health and Wellbeing, Sarah Murphy on the mental health impacts of Labour’s farming policies and family farm tax on farmers, the effects of the tourism tax on businesspeople in the sector and whether the Minister agreed with Wes Streeting’s comments on mental health “overdiagnosis”.
As part of her response in the chamber, Welsh Labour’s Sarah Murphy said: “It’s not necessarily about the diagnosis, I don’t think that people are being over-diagnosed with mental health conditions.”
These comments are at significant odds with Labour’s UK Health Secretary, Wes Streeting who told the BBC’s Sunday with Laura Kuenssberg programme that: “mental wellbeing, illness, it's a spectrum and I think definitely there's an overdiagnosis but there's too many people being written off.”
Commenting, Welsh Conservative Shadow Cabinet Secretary for Mental Health, Children and Young People, Joel James MS said:
The splits between Welsh and UK Labour are widening further by the day.
We were promised two Labour Governments at both ends of the M4, working in lockstep, but instead we have disagreements on fundamental issues such as what constitutes mental health ‘overdiagnoses’.
It is clear that the ballooning welfare bill must be brought under control and Labour’s upcoming emergency budget proves that they are failing to do so, but to essentially blame doctors for ‘over-diagnosing’ is passing the buck and a mistake.
ENDS
