Question to the Department of Health and Social Care:

To ask the Secretary of State for Health and Social Care, pursuant to the Answer of 30 April 2019 to Question 247685 on Suicide, how many local authorities have policies to tackle financial difficulty in their suicide prevention plans.

The Government consulted on the Breathing Space programme between October 2018 and January 2019. Breathing Space is a statutory debt repayment plan which aims to give people in problem debt the opportunity to take control of their finances and put them on a sustainable footing. The scheme includes a specific mechanism to make it easier for people experiencing a mental health crisis to access support. A response to the consultation will be published in due course.

The National Suicide Prevention Strategy highlights groups that need tailored approaches to address their mental health needs to reduce their suicide risk, including people who are vulnerable due to social or economic circumstances. We are working with the local government sector to assess the effectiveness of those plans, and a report will be published shortly that highlights areas of best practice and areas for improvement. This report will include an analysis of the extent to which local authority plans are addressing high risk groups.