Question to the Department of Health and Social Care:

To ask the Secretary of State for Health and Social Care, what steps his Department is taking to extend support for low- and middle income earners who rely on private counselling or therapy in the context of the rising cost of living.

We continue to drive progress on delivering the aims of the NHS Long Term Plan to enhance the availability of National Health Service funded and commissioned mental health support and transformation of mental health services. Through the Long Term Plan, an additional two million people will be able to access NHS-funded mental health support by 2023/24.

On 9 October we launched our Every Mind Matters campaign, which urges people to be kind to their mind. The campaign empowers people to look after their mental health by directing them to free, practical tips and advice, through the Every Mind Matters website. Every Mind Matters includes practical advice on coping with money worries and job uncertainty, and it provides links to a range of voluntary organisations that provide mental health support, such as CALM and Hub of Hope, and to organisations such as Mental Health and Money Advice, a United Kingdom-wide service that combines support for both mental health and financial problems.