“Westminster as a workplace - press release”

WHAT HAPPENS IF LEADERS EXPERIENCE MENTAL ILLNESS?

FORMER NORWEGIAN PRIME MINISTER SHARES PERSONAL EXPERIENCES OF DEPRESSION WHILST IN POWER

MPs and Peers today 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. Speaking at a reception in the House of Commons – hosted by new mental health charity Stand to Reason – Mr Bondevik spoke candidly about his depression, its causes, and his subsequent successful re-election for a second term as Prime Minister of Norway.

Like others in the workplace, MPs in the UK are under pressure to conceal mental illness. In addition, under anomalous common law “idiots” and “lunatics” are restricted from standing as an MP, and statute amended last year by the Mental Health Act 2007 provides that an MP can be automatically removed from the House because of a mental illness. In contrast an MP incapacitated with a physical condition cannot lose their seat. Other provisions under company law affect directors of organisations in both the private and voluntary sectors and are similarly discriminatory and in breach of the Disability Discrimination Act.

Stand to Reason’s new campaign – Breaking glass ceilings in mental health – will focus on Westminster as a workplace as well as a legislative body. An anonymous questionnaire, co-authored with the All Party Parliamentary Group on Mental Health, will be sent to all MPs, Lords and their staff. The results will be published in a report about attitudes, levels of awareness and openness on the subject of mental illness in Parliament. It will also question MPs’ attitudes as employers, and how they have dealt with instances of stress and mental ill health of their colleagues and staff.

Jonathan Naess, Director of Stand to Reason, said: “We hope that Mr Bondevik’s courage and honesty in being open with the Norwegian public, which allowed him to seek appropriate treatment and to return to work promptly, may encourage and inspire our elected representatives in the UK to be more open in the future for the sake of their own good health and for that of the nation”.

Mental illness costs UK businesses £26 billion per annum, the equivalent of £1035.00 per employee per year . Yet, despite these figures, mental illness in the workplace remains shrouded in stigma and discrimination. Studies reveal that more than 80% of employers expect applicants to be honest about their experiences of mental illness, but less than 40% would hire an applicant who had made such disclosures . Consequently, many employees feel unable to seek help from their employers for fear of damaging their employment prospects.

Ends

Notes to Editors:

•Mr Bondevik the former Prime Minister of Norway took several weeks’ sickness absence from leading the country in 1998, while suffering a reactive depression from over-work. Mr Bondevik was able to return to lead the government without political attack and with broad support from the electorate, indeed he was elected for a second term 2001-2005. More recently Mr Bondevik was the UN Special Envoy to the Horn of Africa (2006-2007) and is the President of The Oslo Center for Peace and Human Rights.
•Stand to Reason is a service-user led mental health organisation that works with, and for, people with mental illness in the way that Stonewall has for gay people: by raising the profile, fighting prejudice, establishing rights and achieving equality.
•Stand to Reason is a member of the recently formed National Service User Network and is keen to promote and support increasing political activity within the service-user movement. It seeks to ensure that people with experience of mental illness are able to access a broad range of policy-making arenas in a way that people with physical disabilities have been able to do so for some time.
•One in four people will be affected by mental illness in the course of their life (Mind).
•Jonathan Naess, Director of Stand to Reason, is a successful city financier and lawyer who has experienced mental illness since his early 20s. To request an interview with Jonathan please phone – 07974800881.
•Stand to Reason is currently working with Mind to develop a new initiative aimed at improving mental health in the workplace. This initiative is currently in the development stage, but it is hoped to pilot in 2008.
•For more information please visit www.standtoreason.org.uk