Debate contribution: Mental Illness: Reducing Stigma

Debate contribution by Mr Alan Robinson on 21 January 2025.

MLA

Mr Alan Robinson

Party at the time

Democratic Unionist Party

Date

21 January 2025

Type

Debate contribution

Business

Private Members' Business

Heading

Mental Illness: Reducing Stigma

Assembly identifier

Official Report component 4749658

Read the official Assembly record

Text

I am stating the very obvious by saying that mental illness never discriminates. It affects everybody from every walk of life, from all backgrounds and from every corner of the Province. Despite how common it is, so many individuals are suffering in silence, being weighed down by an illness and an unjust stigma that often accompanies that illness. Whether it is depression, OCD, phobias, eating disorders or addictions, no person experiencing mental ill health should feel shame due to their illness. Traumatic events, such as COVID-19 and violence in Northern Ireland, have all had an impact on the well-being of people in the Province, and that is borne out by the mental health services all being under extreme pressure. Even our EDs are populated by individuals who are suffering from poor mental health. In 2021, the 'Review of mental health statistics in Northern Ireland' reported that we have:

"the highest prevalence of mental health problems in the UK."

A youth well-being survey in 2020 reported:

"Rates of anxiety and depression are around 25% higher in the child and youth population in comparison to other UK nations."

In 2024, the Public Accounts Committee's 'Report on Mental Health Services in Northern Ireland' said:

"around a fifth of adults show indications of probable mental health problems."

Evidence shows that the stigma surrounding mental illness is a barrier to people seeking help and accessing treatment. That stigma can create an environment where individuals feel isolated and sometimes ashamed of their struggles. That sense of shame prevents people speaking openly about their experiences, reaching out for help and, therefore, finding support. As a result of mental illness, mental health issues often go unaddressed, worsening over time and leading to greater long-term consequences, and they can lead to someone taking their own life. Why is mental illness still viewed by some as a sign of weakness, or worse, as something to hide away? Why are people more likely to seek help for a broken leg than they are for depression or anxiety? All of us in the Chamber want to see the full implementation of the mental health strategy 2021-2031, which lays out the 35 actions under three overarching themes and provides the road map for the improvement of mental health services in Northern Ireland over the next decade. The success of the mental health strategy depends on more than just better treatment and care; it will also depend on changing the way in which we all think and speak about mental health in Northern Ireland. It will depend on us all challenging outdated beliefs and stereotypes that fuel stigma, which is why action 1 under theme 1 of the mental health strategy is important. However, given the implementation costs of £1·2 billion, there is increasing risk that the strategy will become outdated due to those costs. The success of the strategy requires a coordinated, sustained effort that involves not only our health service but schools, workplaces, communities, the media and the entire Executive. There is no doubt that reducing stigma is a long-term project. We need to normalise conversations about mental health to ensure that, when someone is struggling, they feel able to speak out without fear of judgement or rejection. The Department of Health and the Executive must continue to ensure that mental health is seen as a medical condition and not some kind of character flaw. People should not be defined by their illness. In the course of my work as a public representative over the past 20 years, I have met many individuals who have bravely shared their personal stories of mental illness. I have listened to the struggles that they have faced in trying to deal with not only their condition but the stigma that they have faced. For some, seeking help for the first time was the hardest step because they feared how others would judge them. All too often, men struggle to seek help. The 2021 NI life and times survey showed that 50% of males reported having difficulty talking to other people about their feelings and emotions. That needs to change. We have seen in other areas of health across the world that stigma can be reduced with the right efforts. Public education campaigns, awareness training and open dialogue have all played a role in reducing stigma. We can do the same for mental health. I genuinely believe that we are making headway. My party will support the motion. The message from the House must be that the Province and the Assembly will stand with those individuals, not against them, and that mental health is just as important as physical health. The Province must be a place where no one feels ashamed of their struggles and no one is made to feel isolated because of their mental health.

800 words. Text as published by the Northern Ireland Assembly.

Assessment

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Assessed 21 October 2026 at 11:47 UTC by jev-1.13.0 (requested as typesafe/jev) under rubric 2026.10-r9, methodology 1.9.

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