A Scottish Liberal Democrat MSP is calling on Holyrood to increase investment in mental health services.
Jim Hume, the party's health spokesperson, says support for key services lag behind that of England and Wales. It's also emerged 1 in 10 homeless Scots suffer from some form of mental illness, and risk 'falling through the cracks' of already straining health services.
Mr Hume has warned that homeless Scots are more likely to miss out on crucial treatments and has called on SNP Ministers to ensure mental ill health is treated with the same urgency as physical ill health. He said:
"Securing accurate data on Scotland’s homeless population is challenging but these figures are stark. There are thousands of Scots on our streets being affected by mental ill health. These people need our help. We cannot write them off. We know investment in mental health services in Scotland has fallen behind England and Wales. Homeless people are amongst those most likely to fall through the gaps in the system. Just because they may not have a voice does not mean that they should be excluded from services.
"SNP Ministers need to ensure mental ill health is treated with the same urgency as physical ill health. Everyone – from the First Minister to a person sleeping rough in Edinburgh or Glasgow – should have access to mental health services they need at the time they need them."
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