Question to the Department of Health and Social Care:

To ask the Secretary of State for Health and Social Care, whether her Department is taking steps to bring waiting times for mental health patients in-line with waiting times for physical health patients.

We remain committed to achieving parity between mental and physical health services, as outlined in the parity of esteem definition set out in a letter to the Public Accounts Committee in February 2024.

Given funding is important for reaching parity of esteem, we are making good progress with investment in National Health Service mental health services. Between 2018/19 and 2023/24, NHS spending on mental health has increased by £4.7 billion in cash terms, as compared to the target of £3.4 billion in cash terms set out at the time of the Long-Term Plan. For 2024/25, mental health spend is forecast to continue to grow, and will make up 9.01% of all recurrent NHS spending.

In February 2022, NHS England published the outcomes of its consultation on the potential to introduce five new access and waiting time standards for mental health services, as part of its clinically led review of NHS Access Standards. These are: for an urgent referral to a community based mental health crisis service, a patient should be seen within 24 hours of referral, across all ages; for a very urgent referral to a community based mental health crisis service, a patient should be seen within four hours of referral, for all age groups; patients referred from accident and emergency should be seen face to face within one hour by a mental health liaison or children and young people’s equivalent service; children, young people and their families and carers presenting to community-based mental health services, should start to receive care within four weeks of referral; and adults and older adults presenting to community-based mental health services should start to receive help within four weeks of referral.