Nothing but despair from this coalition

Last Updated on Monday, 06 June 2011 13:05 Written by Keith Henderson Monday, 06 June 2011 00:00

The social consequences of the economic crisis are beginning to reveal themselves in all their horror. There has been a dramatic rise in the number of people hospitalised after harming themselves, with a staggering 104,000 admitted to hospital.
Mental health charity Rethink's chief executive Paul Jenkins says these figures are just the tip of the iceberg.
Most of the admissions were for overdoses, but 10 per cent of cases involved laceration or a blow with a blunt object.
The situation can only get worse as the government's cuts come into force.
As Mr Jenkins notes, "Many people are reporting heightened levels of distress in response to cuts in welfare benefits."
Facing the prospect of leaving university burdened for life by crippling debt as a result of the outrageous increase in tuition fees, our young people demonstrated their anger and frustration outside Tory Party HQ.
Witnessing the sheer level of bitterness among this abandoned generation it is no surprise when Mr Jenkins adds: "Self-harm is most common in young people, who may be suffering disproportionately."
Their despair is revealing itself in an increase in self-harm as well as an increase in suicide in a damning indictment of the coalition's economic strategy.
Young people are our future and they fully deserve and indeed have every right to a decent future of hope and anticipation.
Only a Labour government can offer that future. All this government can offer is despair, hopelessness and more despair.
Keith Henderson
Clacton Labour Party
Parliamentary Spokesman