Debate contribution: Mental Health Data

Debate contribution by Mr Danny Donnelly on 16 February 2026.

MLA

Mr Danny Donnelly

Party at the time

Alliance Party

Date

16 February 2026

Type

Debate contribution

Business

Private Members' Business

Heading

Mental Health Data

Assembly identifier

Official Report component 5391997

Read the official Assembly record

Text

Mental health remains one of the greatest health issues affecting Northern Ireland, and it impacts on the most vulnerable in our society. In 2024, its cost was conservatively estimated at £3·4 billion annually by a PAC report. The findings also pointed to the unacceptable state of mental health data in Northern Ireland: data is limited and overwhelmingly focused on activity rather than impact; there is variation across the trusts; and it is disjointed and inconsistent. The report noted that, even where data exists, access to it is extremely challenging. Most concerning of all, the Committee highlighted that the Department developed the 10-year, £1·2 billion mental health strategy despite having little data on outcomes, no strategic data on the workforce needed and limited data on the voluntary and community sector. If you cannot measure what works, what does not work, where demand is rising or where gaps exist, reform becomes guesswork. The Minister talks about transformation, prevention and early intervention, but, without reliable, standardised and transparent data, we cannot accurately grasp the need or whether any of it is delivering. The 2023 study by the Simon Community NI and Depaul found that 68% of people experiencing homelessness have a diagnosed mental health condition, compared with 19% of the general population. Crucially, 84% received that diagnosis before becoming homeless, and that tells us something vital: when we fail to intervene effectively in mental health, the consequences spill into housing, justice, education and beyond. Crisis is always more expensive than prevention. Let us take eating disorders as another example. The routine data that we collect reflects those diagnosed in hospital settings with conditions such as anorexia or bulimia. A condition such as binge eating disorder is not considered in the data and does not have clearly defined service pathways, despite being one of the most common eating disorders in the UK. If we are not measuring prevalence properly and there are no clear pathways, we are not intervening early. When we fail to intervene early, we store up greater costs and poorer outcomes down the line. An untreated patient does not disappear; their condition is likely to worsen. They may develop depression, obesity, diabetes or myriad other conditions. They may require more intensive mental health support later, alongside costly physical healthcare. The cost does not vanish; it compounds. What appears to be short-term financial restraint becomes long-term financial pressure, and that pattern continues to repeat across the system. The Health Committee has heard evidence that the culture in the Department often appears to be focused on managing the immediate financial pressure, rather than designing services around long-term efficiency and outcomes. When the data is incomplete, services are easier to defer, and, if the data is fragmented, reform is fragmented. Thanks to the New Script for Mental Health charity, it has been pointed out that, while we are almost five years into the mental health strategy, there is still no outcomes framework. The Department has previously cited the roll-out of the Encompass system as the reason for the delay, but, as we know, Encompass was completed in May 2025, and the Department of Health's deadline has now passed. The long-overdue progress is welcome, but systems are useful only if they ask the right questions. Today's debate is not a technical one about data; it is about the strategic need to better understand how to reform our failing systems. If we do not collect meaningful data, we cannot demonstrate need; if we cannot demonstrate need, we do not commission services; and, if we do not commission services, we create avoidable costs to the patient and to our health system. If we are serious about improving our outcomes, reducing long-term costs and restoring public confidence, accurate, consistent and transparent data must be treated as essential infrastructure.

As the New Script for Mental Health campaign has highlighted, without transparent data, MLAs cannot scrutinise performance, public funds cannot be assessed for value against outcomes, inequalities cannot be addressed if they are not being measured and strategies cannot succeed without accountability. Until we can properly measure the problem, we cannot credibly claim to be addressing or solving it.

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

Assessment

Not flagged

Jev’s structured answers

Assessed 21 October 2026 at 14:56 UTC by jev-1.13.0 (requested as typesafe/jev) under rubric 2026.10-r9, methodology 1.9.

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