Question to the Department of Health and Social Care:

To ask the Secretary of State for Health and Social Care, what assessment his department has made of the American '988' Suicide and Crisis Lifeline model, and whether there are plans to develop a similarly integrated crisis line here.

In the NHS Long Term Plan, NHS England committed to simplifying access to urgent mental health support via a single three-digit number. However, engagement with patients, clinicians and mental health organisations raised concerns that this could risk confusion in moments of acute distress. There was strong consensus that strengthening existing access points, particularly NHS 111, would be more effective.

The National Health Service has therefore enhanced the mental health crisis response within NHS 111, enabling anyone in England experiencing a mental health crisis to speak to a trained professional at any time. Work is also underway to provide support via text, to improve accessibility.

Staff can direct callers to community mental health services and other crisis care. This complements the Government’s Suicide Prevention Strategy for England, which aims to reduce suicide and ensure timely access to appropriate support – by phone, text or face-to-face, in the most suitable setting.