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Chairman of the LGA's Community Wellbeing Board, Cllr Izzi Seccombe, responds to data from the charity Mind on councils' spending on public mental health.

"It is wrong to look at mental health funding in isolation without considering the range of other services councils provide that directly impact on people with mental health issues. Local authorities do a huge amount of positive grassroots work including tackling obesity, and helping people to get active, stop smoking and cut down on drinking. As physical and mental health are inextricably linked, this has a major impact.

"Councils have budgeted to spend £46 million on public mental health in 2016/17. This is despite having funding cut by central government by more than £330 million over the next four years – a reduction of 9.7 per cent.

"Councils, who only took over responsibility for public health just over three years ago, cannot be expected to reverse decades of underinvestment in mental health spending by successive governments overnight. Local authorities have a finite budget and many competing health priorities.

"What is needed is a root and branch overhaul of mental health services that focuses on prevention."

View related information: Charity reveals ‘shocking’ spend of less than 1 per cent on public mental health