As the Government announce changes to the welfare system with major benefit cuts set to be announced, Health Secretary, Wes Streeting, has suggested people are being “over diagnosed” with mental health conditions.
In an effort to get more people back to work and reduce the benefits bill, the Government is looking at peoples’ fitness to work. In the post Covid era we have seen a lot of headlines about poor mental health, anxiety and a rise in children absent from school and adults in the workplace. Mental health services are at breaking point and those who need help often have to wait too long for an appointment. So, what is happening with the nation’s mental health?
Apparently, there is little reliable data on mental health diagnoses in general, according to the NHS. However, other sources of information do suggest a spike in depression and anxiety going into the Covid pandemic and lockdowns. Since Covid there has been a higher level of anxiety-depressive disorder diagnoses and prescriptions issued for mental health conditions. Figures also show that the number of people in contact with NHS mental health services has nearly doubled in the past decade, (from 1.2 million in September 2016 to 2 million January 2025: Source NHS England) with the sharpest increase seen post pandemic. NHS spending on mental health has also significantly increased from £116 billion in 2016/2017 to £18.2 billion in 2024/2025. Perhaps it is understandable the Government is looking at the rise in spending and seeing if cuts can be made.
Whilst the Government is looking to support mental health services – there are currently around 1.6 million people waiting for mental health referrals, and the Health Secretary has pledged to add 8,500 more mental health staff to cut backlogs – they are also looking to reduce the welfare bill.
One area that the Government is looking to make cuts is Personal Independence Payments (PIP), making it harder to become eligible for disability payments, which have risen largely due to mental health claimants. PIP is not means tested and is aimed at helping people with the extra costs that may arise with long-term physical or mental health conditions. Claims for PIP have gone up in recent years, the number of claimants in England and Wales as of January 2025 were 3.7 million, marking a 2% rise compared to October 2024, with around 37% relating to mental health issues.
The number of people who are entitled to sick benefits in England and Scotland has also increased to around 5 million, an increase of 23% from pre-covid levels. Mental health issues make up a significant part of these claims. Mental health conditions are becoming more common amongst the working-age population, in 2010, 8–10% of the working-age population reported a long-term mental or behavioural health condition, this has now increased to 13–15% (according to data from the Institute for Fiscal Studies).
A recent study has found that prescriptions for drugs to treat attention deficit hyperactivity disorder (ADHD) have also increased 18% year on year since the Covid pandemic. The results from the study, carried out by researchers at the University of Huddersfield and Aston University, showed there was an upward trend in prescriptions for the condition in each region across England. The researcher said this could in part be due to an increasing awareness of ADHD via social media, encouraging more people to seek diagnosis and treatment.
However, they also warned that “misinformation on these platforms may lead to misconceptions about symptoms, diagnosis and treatment”. The impact of the Covid pandemic, could also be a contributing factor, with the study citing there could be a “strong association between the impact of the (Covid) pandemic and the worsening of ADHD symptoms.”
Similarly, data shows that prescriptions for anti-depressant medication have also increased in recent years and around 7 million people in the UK (around 15% of the population) are currently prescribed these medicines.
Whether the rise in mental issues represents a permanent change and a growing health crisis, or if this is a more temporary shift post-pandemic is unclear. Certainly, there has been a greater awareness and acceptance of mental health issues in recent years, which means that more people are coming forward for help and receiving the treatment they need.
Evidence also suggests that mental health has worsened since the pandemic; whether this will reduce again as we work through the post pandemic era in unknown. Other factors such as economic insecurity, cost of living crisis, rise in social media and pressures on young people may also be contributing factors. The rise in mental health issues in young people is particularly concerning and needs special attention to find out why our youth seem to be suffering from increasingly poor mental health.
Overall, what the data is showing is that more people are in contact with NHS mental health services, more people are claiming benefits citing mental health issues and prescriptions for mental health related conditions are rising. The cost of the nation’s poor mental health to the NHS is significant, and the broader economic and social costs for mental ill health in England alone are estimated to be reaching around £300 billion annually.
Whether there is a level of people being ‘over diagnosed’, as the Health Secretary suggests, is going to be difficult to decipher, and navigating through the different claims to reduce the welfare bill is a potential minefield for the Government.
Photo: Health Secretary, Wes Streeting, has suggested people are being “over diagnosed” with mental health conditions. (Credit: House of Commons)
Rachel Kayani
