Welcome News on Mental Health Waiting Times

As an amendment to motion S4M-14952 in the name of James Dornan (Welcome News on Mental Health Waiting Times), leave out from “understands” to end and insert “believes however that, since the announcement in May 2015, waiting times have increased for child and adolescent mental health services as fewer children and adolescents were seen within the 18-week target, while also fewer NHS boards reached the 18-week target in the quarter ending September 2015; further understands that the percentage of adults seen for a psychological treatment within 18 weeks has decreased since the previous quarter to 81.1%, while the 90% treatment has not yet been achieved since the target was set; recalls that the funding for mental health as a percentage of NHS expenditure has continuously decreased since 2009-10 and that this has consequences for the capacity of NHS boards to deal with the required treatments; considers that mental health should receive a greater proportion of NHS spending, and urges the Scottish Government to establish parity in law between mental and physical health."