Question to the Department of Health and Social Care:

To ask the Secretary of State for Health, what steps his Department is taking to increase spending on mental health; and if he will make a statement.

The Department and NHS England continue to work together to ensure that there are consistent messages to commissioners and providers about the importance of delivering parity of esteem for people with mental health needs.

In our new five-year plan for mental health, Achieving Better Access to Mental Health Services by 2020, we identified £40 million additional spending this year and freed up a further £80 million for 2015-16. This will, for the first time ever, enable the setting of access and waiting time standards in mental health services.

Monitor and NHS England are responsible for setting the national tariff arrangements and are working together to develop a national payment system for mental health which promotes early intervention, access to effective evidence-based care, improved outcomes and recovery.

The national tariff arrangements for 2015-16 will include examples of new and innovative payment models which local commissioners and providers may choose to adopt next year.

Funding for mental health has increased by £120 million in 2014-15 seeing it rise from £8.5 billion in 2013-14 to £8.62 billion in 2014-15. These figures do not include spending on mental health in primary care or prescriptions which is estimated at £3 billion.