Jane Dodds Demands Detailed Timeline to Fix Child Mental Health Waiting Times

Responding to Welsh Government figures showing that almost 80 per cent of those waiting for a first appointment with Specialist Child and Adolescent Mental Health Services (sCAMHS) are waiting over four weeks, Welsh Liberal Democrat Leader and Senedd Member Jane Dodds has demanded Labour provide fresh funds and a detailed timeline for when they will fix long waits for support.

Welsh Liberal Democrat Leader & Senedd Member Jane Dodds

According to the data released today (February 16) 77.9 per cent of those referred to SCAHMS are waiting over four weeks for a first appointment, a significant deterioration from the same period last year where only 52.9 per cent were waiting over the four-week target.

The Welsh Liberal Democrats are now calling on the Welsh Government to outline how it will urgently reduce waiting times.

Jane Dodds said:

“These figures are devastating. We know that waiting times for Child and Adolescent Mental Health Services are some of the longest in the health service and they’re getting worse rather than better. We should be treating mental ill health with the same urgency as we do physical health, but these statistics show we are nowhere near achieving that.

“The Welsh Liberal Democrats have championed the cause of Wales’ mental health, having pushed for greater mental health funding during budget discussions with the Welsh Government, including an immediate cash boost to mental heath services.

“The Government needs to act. They must swiftly provide a detailed timeline and resources to clear sCAMHS waiting lists, not by parking kids on medication or other inappropriate interventions, but by ensuring children and young people have access to quality talking therapy near to where they live.”

Comments

Calls for Labour to Go Further on War on Plastic

The Welsh Liberal Democrats have called on Welsh Labour to be more ambitious in its war on plastic and introduce a bottle deposit scheme in Wales. While welcoming the long-delayed plans to ban single-use carrier bags and plastic drinking straws in Wales, the Welsh Liberal Democrats said there was more to be done. Under legislation introduced today, single-use carrier bags, plastic drinking straws, plastic plates, cutlery, stirrers and cotton buds would all be banned under the proposed new law. Research from Wrap Cymru estimates that 400,000 tonnes of plastic waste are generated in Wales each year, with 67 per cent of that waste being packaging. Another report by the Marine Conservation Society found that there were 29 drinks containers for every 100 meters of beach in Wales. A Deposit Return Scheme, also known as a bottle deposit scheme, encourages people to recycle drinks containers such as plastic or glass bottles. People pay a small deposit f...

Wales Hosepipe Ban – Criticism of Welsh Water Over Large Bonuses While Infrastructure Creaks

Following the news that people in some areas of Wales could face a hosepipe ban this summer, the Welsh Liberal Democrats have criticised Welsh Water for paying large bonuses to its bosses while infrastructure creaks. Data from Ofwat, the Water Services Regulation Authority, showed that 169.9 megalitres/day were being wasted through leakage in Welsh Water’s network during 2020-21. The company also failed to meet its Per capita consumption (PCC) targets which are designed to push for less water to be taken from the environment. The Welsh Liberal Democrats say that their analysis of Company House data shows that executives at Dŵr Cymru were paid £2.6 million in 2020 and 2021 including £931,000 in bonuses, benefits and inc entives. Commenting Welsh Liberal Democrat Leader Jane Dodds said: " We cannot control the hot and dry weather, but we can control wastage through outdated or poorly-maintained infrastructure. “Welsh Water brands itself as “no...

Ed Davey pays tribute to Her Majesty The Queen in Parliament

Ed Davey, Leader of the Liberal Democrats, paid tribute to Her late Majesty Queen Elizabeth II in Parliament. The deep mourning across the country now – just like the celebrations of her Jubilee a few months ago – comes not from a sense of duty, but from genuine and heartfelt affection, love and admiration of Her Majesty. It's not because we were her subjects, but because she was truly our Queen. What she meant to us is perhaps best summed up by a phrase on so many people’s lips over the last twenty-four hours: “I can’t imagine our country without her.” For almost everyone in the country, she has been there our whole lives. At times of national grief and national jubilation, she has never not been there for us. So it is hard to accept that she is gone. And hard to see how we go on without her. But we will. Our great United Kingdom has a great future – because The Queen’s spirit of strength, grace and resolve lives on in her people. One of the great...

Welsh Liberal blogs

Search This Blog