• Skip to primary navigation
  • Skip to main content
  • Skip to primary sidebar

MayorWatch

London News and Comment

  • NEWS

City Hall should stand up for mental health sufferers, not add to the stigma

December 6, 2011 by Martin Hoscik

Today’s Evening Standard quotes Boris aide Daniel Moylan describing Ken Livingstone as “schizophrenic”.

Given his own use of offensive terms to attack opponents, Livingstone has little scope to complain but this isn’t the first time Team Boris have attacked opponents on the grounds of mental health.

At June’s Mayor’s Question Time, Boris himself branded London Assembly member John Biggs “Care in the Community”.

Like Livingstone, Biggs is capable of giving as good as he gets but, regardless of how resilient the target is, the casual use of mental health terms as insults should have no place at City Hall.

At some stage in their lives, one in four people will suffer some form of mental health condition. When they do they shouldn’t see those in public life as part of the problem.

Boris should apologise for his aide and ensure none of his appointees use the language of mental health prejudice.

UPDATE: Since I published this piece, Mark Davies, Director of Communications for the charity Rethink Mental Illness has issued the following statement:

“This comment is bizarre and absolutely inappropriate. You would never hear a public figure using any other kind of illness as a term of abuse like this. Schizophrenia is a serious illness, not a casual insult, frankly we expect more from people in the public eye.

“His comments underline the appalling level of misunderstanding there is about this illness, its causes and impact. I suggest Mr Moylan issues a full apology at the earliest opportunity.”

The Time to Change campaign – recently awarded new funding by Comic Relief and the coalition – works to tackle the stigma associated with mental health issues.

For information on their work, and how your organisation can show its commitment to tackling mental health discrimination, visit time-to-change.org.uk

  • Click to share on X (Opens in new window) X
  • Click to share on Facebook (Opens in new window) Facebook
  • Click to share on Tumblr (Opens in new window) Tumblr
  • Click to share on Pinterest (Opens in new window) Pinterest
  • Click to share on LinkedIn (Opens in new window) LinkedIn
  • Click to share on Reddit (Opens in new window) Reddit
  • Click to print (Opens in new window) Print
  • Click to email a link to a friend (Opens in new window) Email

Filed Under: Martin Hoscik

RECENT UPDATES

Tube and rail users to benefit from Oyster weekly fares cap

Mayor and TfL call on ministers to help plug funding gap

Tube to get full mobile phone coverage from 2024

TfL says Direct Vision Standard is already making HGVs safer for London road users




POPULAR

City Hall to move to Docklands as Mayor seeks to raise £55m for frontline services

‘Concern’ over TfL’s ability to deliver major projects in wake of Crossrail cost overruns

City Hall halts London Overground ticket office closures but many will still see opening hours reduced

Transport for London confirms bus cuts will go ahead despite passenger opposition

Copyright © 2025 · Terms of Use · Privacy Policy