The following details have been supplied by the TUC:

Workplace campaigners have said a speech by Theresa May outlining her action plan for mental health fails to address root causes and the government-imposed funding crisis blighting mental health services. In a speech at the Charity Commission this week, the prime minster announced a ‘comprehensive’ package of measures on mental health support in schools, workplaces and communities. She said: “I want us to employ the power of government as a force for good to transform the way we deal with mental health problems right across society.” The plan includes “a new partnership with employers to improve mental health support in the workplace.” There will also be a review headed by Lord Dennis Stevenson and Mind chief executive Paul Farmer “on how best to ensure employees with mental health problems are enabled to thrive in the workplace and perform at their best.”
However, the union GMB said the prime minister was “in a dangerous state of denial” about the economic drivers of mental ill-health and the impact of government cuts on mental health services. National secretary Rehana Azam said: “The bottom line is more than 12 per cent of mental health staff have left and almost 5,000 mental health beds have been cut since 2010.” She added: “The prime minister must also address some of the economic causes of increased mental ill-health including the increasingly stressful and insecure nature of work which adds to the pressure on individuals and their families. Happy sound bites and small measures are all well and good – but what we desperately need is a cash injection for our chronically underfunded mental health services.”

Hilda Palmer of the national Hazards Campaign, said the Theresa May’s speech was “woefully inadequate”, adding spiralling workloads, increasing job insecurity and long hours were among the factors driving the increase in mental health problems. She said: “We do not need another report, what we need is urgent action. Action which forces employers to ensure that their employees’ mental health is not made worse by their workplaces.”