“Stand to Reason on Newsnight - ex - Norwegian PM”

On 21 January 2008, Stand to Reason held an event at the House of Commons, sponsored on a cross-party basis by all three parties where MPs and Peers heard from former Norwegian Prime Minister, Kjell Magne Bondevik, about his experience of mental illness, which caused him to take several weeks off work to recover whilst in power.

In an interview following the event with Jeremy Paxman for BBC Television’s Newsnight , Mr Bondevik spoke candidly about his depression, its causes, and his subsequent successful re-election for a second term as Prime Minister of Norway.

A package featuring an interview with Matt Cooper, one of the members of Stand to Reason, introduces the interview with Mr Bondevik. You can watch the programme again on the Newsnight website, where it is currently the number one recommended clip. link

Bravery in the face of mental illness
Jeremy Paxman 22 Jan 08, 06:29 PM writes in the Newsnight blog. Please join in the debate. link

“I know we’re supposed not to be partisan, or to pass judgement on those we interview.

But I have to say that of all the many politicians it has been my (occasionally painful) duty to interview over the years, Mr Bondevik comes pretty near the top.

It’s so rare to find a man talking with such frankness and courage about such a charged and sensitive subject.

For some reason, mental ill-health retains an aura, which seems at times to make it almost impossible to talk about it sensibly. Quite why this should be, when so many of us are going to suffer from depression or other illnesses, I don’t know.

I suspect it’s because we’re frightened of it ourselves. How much better it would be if we could all treat it as we treat physical conditions, like ‘flu or cancer or a broken arm.

Mr Bondevik’s honesty in putting his cards on the table and telling the people of Norway what was going on in his mind and in his life is admirable. But the reaction of Norwegian voters is just as impressive.

They voted him back into office. If I was being glum, I’d say that it would never happen here because the party leader would find himself the victim of lots of headlines about “Voting for a Loony”.

But don’t tell me there’s any reason we should be less enlightened than the Norwegians.”