So Where Were They?

Last week in the House of Commons, MPs debated mental health. The physical well-being of people has been the subject of discussion up and down the country and the response – or lack of it – by the NHS, its funding and the results it delivers, are often commented upon by MPs. All, regardless of party, want to persuade voters that they are on the side of the NHS and can be trusted to run it properly. Can they?

Physical health is the most obvious manifestation of what the NHS does; a broken leg is a broken leg and the NHS will help heal it – however convoluted the process may sometimes be. Mental health however, is a different matter. For decades it has been largely ignored by politicians and the help offered by the NHS at best, patchy, at worst, of no help at all.

Yet more people than ever before need that help with their state of mind. The stresses and strains of modern-day life are far greater than those previous generations have endured. Worries over how to make a meagre income stretch until the next pay-day; how to pay ever-increasing bills and keep the lights and heating on; how to simply have sufficient money to eat enough to stay alive are common in the UK of 2019. It is small wonder that mental health is, or should be, of greater concern now than ever before.

So how many MPs debated the issue last week? Go and look it up. You can find the attendance in the House of Commons on the internet. The number will astonish you, particularly when compared to the number attending to preen and pontificate over Brexit.

Go and check the attendance for yourself. Then ask whether or not, collectively speaking, the current bunch of MPs are really doing the job you, as voters, sent them to Parliament for. The answer to that is a resounding no. And not just over Brexit either - it is why we believe that it is time for almost all of them to be dismissed in disgrace, and new candidates selected.