A charity which supports men at risk of suicide has raised the alarm over the Scottish Government's decision to cut almost £20m from mental health services.

Finance secretary Shona Robison on Tuesday announced £500m of spending reductions including £115m on the NHS and social care in a move to fill a £1 billion black hole in the government's budget.

It is also spending another £500million from a sell-off of Scotland’s wind energy in a bid to make up the shortfall.

As the news developed charities and groups affected by the cuts have begun to respond.
Mental health charity Men Matter Scotland, which is based in Glasgow and works with hundreds of men every week, said the impact of Ms Robison's cuts would be felt 'immediately'.

Tom Elvin, the chair of Men Matter Scotland, said: “We are really alarmed and disappointed that Scotland’s Finance Secretary Shona Robinson has announced an £18.8 million reduction in mental health services in Scotland. This is an in-year reduction, and its effects will be felt immediately. 

"This is a real cause for concern given the deterioration we see daily in men’s mental health at our hub in Drumchapel. Almost 500 men from all over the west of Scotland come through our doors every week and we are getting busier with every passing month.

"We remind all men aged 16+ who can access our hub in the west of Glasgow that we are open daily from 10.30am to 9pm and there is no need for an appointment. Come along and speak to our peer-to-peer workers. We will give you a space to speak, share how you are feeling and help you build a plan to support your own mental health. We are here to support you.”

Anne Hughes, director of Men Matter Scotland, said the cut would mean more pressure on the emergency services.

“This cut is only going to put more stress on our already massively overstretched emergency services who already refer men to us on a daily basis. A real cause for concern for everyone – accident and emergency departments and police will probably be the ones most impacted by this cut and organisations like Men Matter Scotland. We exist and are sustained in the most part thanks to the generosity of the public," she said.

"There is an irony in the fact that a large majority of our funding comes from the bereaved families of men who have sadly taken their own life. The situation we are in as a country, as a people, is desperate. More needs to be done for the future of our children and the future of Scotland.”

Official figures released last month showed that the suicide rate increased in Scotland last year with those from the poorest communities 2.5 times more likely to die by suicide.

Figures published by the National Records of Scotland (NRS) show there were 792 deaths recorded as probable suicides last year, an increase of 30 from 2022.

Male suicides increased by 34 to 590, while female suicides decreased by four to 202 in the last year.

Official data has estimated the rate of death by suicide in men to be more than three times as high than the female rate.

It also shows the average age of death for suicides had increased overall from 41.9 in the year 2000 to 46.6 in 2023.

In 2023, the rate of suicide in those from remote small towns was estimated to be 20.5 deaths per 100,000 of the population, compared to 13.2 from large urban areas.

For men, those from remote small towns had a rate of 33.5 deaths per 100,000 people, compared to 21 deaths in large urban areas.

There was a similar trend in women, with the rate 7.8 per 100,000 people for those in remote small towns, compared to 5.8 in large urban areas.

The statistics also show that at a local level, the estimated death by suicide rate was significantly higher than the Scottish average in Dundee, Highland and East Ayrshire council areas.

While 2023 data for the rest of the UK has not yet been released, based on statistics from the previous year, Scotland had the highest rate of death by suicide of all four nations with 14 deaths per 100,000 people, followed by Wales with 12.4, Northern Ireland with 12.3 and England with 10.5.

Speaking as the figures were released last month Dr Murray Smith, suicide prevention lead, Royal College of Psychiatrists in Scotland, said: “Every death by suicide is devastating for all those affected. The increased rate in probable deaths in some of our most deprived areas illustrates the ongoing health inequalities experienced by many Scots.

“Efforts in suicide prevention and focus on ensuring those in suicidal crisis can access prompt and appropriate help – wherever they are – remain vitally important.”

A Scottish Government spokesperson said: “Every life lost to suicide is an enormous tragedy and leaves devastating and long-lasting impacts on families, friends and communities.

“The First Minister and Finance Secretary have both made clear, following the UK Chancellor's July statement, that the Scottish Government continues to face the most challenging financial situation since devolution.

“We have sought to protect mental health funding, and, despite difficult decisions about reductions which affect all of Government, maintain our commitment to mental health.

“Through this budget, the Scottish Government and NHS Boards continue to support spend in excess of £1.3 billion for mental health, enabling record numbers of staff to provide more varied support and services to a larger number of people than ever before.”