Leslie Le Hégarat, who has suffered from mental health problems for almost 30 years, received a letter from the Social Security Department last Friday informing him that he is to receive £12 a week less in income support from next year.
- Islanders with mental illnesses are supported by Mind Jersey.
- The independent local charity aims to encourage Jersey to be an Island that promotes and protects good mental health for all, and that treats people with experience of mental illness fairly, positively and with respect.
- Although affiliated with Mind in the UK, Mind Jersey retains its independence, both financially and operationally and all money raised stays in Jersey for the benefit of Island residents.
- Mind Jersey was re-launched in June 2011, as the most recent stage in the evolution of the charity. The charity evolved from Jersey Focus on Mental Health, which in turn formed in 2002 when the Jersey Association of Mental Health (formed in 1969) and The Jersey Schizophrenia fellowship (formed in 1977), merged.
- You can contact the charity by calling 0800 7359404 or emailing help@mindjersey.org
- More information is available here
The reduction to his welfare entitlement, which is currently about £270 a week, comes after a number of cutbacks outlined in the Medium-Term Financial Plan were approved earlier this month.
The plan aims to close a predicted deficit of £145 million in Jersey’s finances by 2019, with the Social Security Department aiming to achieve £10 million in savings over the next three years.
But Mr Le Hégarat believes that the cuts, which include a reduction in income support entitlement for those receiving long-term incapacity allowance, could worsen the mental health condition of vulnerable Islanders.
He said: ‘I know plenty of other people who are in the same situation as me with mental health issues.
‘The letters are going to cause them stress and more people are going to end up in hospital. They don’t need this.
‘When I got the letter I was really stressed, but I wasn’t able to get in contact with anybody from the mental health team.’
The 59-year-old, who is divorced and lives alone with his dog in St Martin, worked as a fisherman before his illness developed.
He has had difficulty supporting himself as he has struggled to work for the last 20 years.
He said: ‘I was told about six weeks ago that they were going to reduce my income support by about £2 a week.
Then I got a letter last Friday saying that they were going to reduce it by even more – £500 to £600 a year.
‘It will be about £12 a week less. That’s how much I pay to feed my dog. I will have to find the money from somewhere else now.’
Mr Le Hégarat says that the wrong people have been targeted as the Council of Ministers aim to resolve the Island’s financial problems.
He said: ‘There are lots of well-off people in the Island who would be able to afford to compensate for what has been taken away from us.’
Deputy Montfort Tadier, who has helped Mr Hégarat in the past, also called for wealthier Islanders to accept more of the burden.
He said: ‘The Council of Ministers need to accept that the current socio-economic model is creaking and they should put a more workable system in place.
‘If that means those on higher incomes paying more, then that’s the way it needs to be.’
Social Security chief officer Ian Burns said that the change to the entitlement that will affect Mr Le Hégarat had been made because it was ‘not well targeted’.
Last year, Mind Jersey released two films starring Islanders who have suffered from depression.
The charity released the films at a special premiere at Cineworld.
The purpose of the films is to highlight the condition, with the aim of increasing awareness and understanding about mental health, which affects one in four people in the UK.
In the films below, Mind Jersey ambassadors Beth Moore and Stephen Le Quesne speak openly and honestly about how depression affected them:
