Credit crunch mental health fears

The economic downturn could cause mental health problems for more than 1.5 million people in UK, the Conservatives have claimed.

Shadow health secretary Andrew Lansley has warned financial insecurity could fuel a 26 per cent increase in mental problems ranging from anxiety to lost self-esteem.

Speaking to the Mental Health Network in York, Mr Lansley said: "In the midst of serious discussions over unemployment figures, fiscal stimulus packages and interest rate cuts, we must not lose sight of the most pressing consequence of the current problems - human misery. Mental health illness is the forgotten face of this recession."

Economists have predicted that numbers of people out of work could reach three million by 2010 - a rise of 3.7 percentage points to 9.5%. And an American study has suggested that each percentage point rise in unemployment produces a 7% rise in non-psychotic mental health disorders.

Copyright Press Association 2008

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