MP opens up on ‘dark cloud’ after almost losing wife in candid mental health admission

MP makes candid mental health admission during PMQsReuters

Transcript

00:00On International Men's Day and in the spirit of Movember, I want to be open about my own past

00:04mental health challenges in the hope that it might encourage other men to do the same.

00:09And during the traumatic birth of my first son, I nearly lost my wife and a dark cloud settled

00:14over me. A cloud lifted through conversation and support and through the safe arrival of

00:19my second son. And bright days lie ahead. I'm joined in the gallery today by Mike from York

00:25Menfulness, a fantastic charity giving men a place to talk. So will the Prime Minister

00:30as a dad himself agree with me that strength as a man means being open about our emotions

00:36and that we should never face into challenges on our own?

00:42Can I thank him for his honesty? It's never easy to stand up and say what he's just said.

00:52And I hope he understands just how important that is for others who will be suffering, who

00:58will be inspired to be able to talk openly about their experiences and importantly get

01:05the help that they need.

01:07I'm really proud to publish the first ever men's health strategy today to tackle challenges

01:13that disproportionately affect men, including certain cancers and suicide, which is tragically

01:20the biggest killer of those men under 50. So we will invest millions in helping more men

01:25access mental health support, better care for former minors and rolling out at-home blood

01:31tests to tackle prostate cancer. But I do thank him for speaking out. I think it's so important.

01:36It's so brave. It's been done across the House. This isn't a party political issue, but it's

01:40always very powerful when it's done and it's a model for all of us.