Years & Years’ Olly Alexander questions NHS cutbacks

Olly Alexander says the cuts annoy him. Image by Paweł Marynowski. Creative Commons

Frontman explains how the wait to receive help for mental health issues has significantly increased in the last 10 years

The NHS has been under severe scrutiny in recent months and in an interview with The Guardian’s Owen Jones, Years & Years frontman Olly Alexander has spoken out against the cuts being made to the NHS’ mental health services.

Alexander told of his firsthand experience of mental health issues, saying: “I used to wake up in the middle of the night and not be able to move… I’d hallucinate and have really scary visions and dreams, so I wouldn’t want to sleep.”

Continuing: “The first thing you start to think is you’re alone and you’re crazy. There is a support network out there… make use of it.”

Alexander then explained his opposition to the cuts being made, advising : “I care about mental health a lot. It’s affected me and my family a lot, and it annoys me there’s not enough provided and stuff has been cut… When I started trying to get a counsellor on the NHS about 10 years ago, there was a six-week waiting list. And now, I’m told, it’s like three months – it can be – or longer… it feels like mental health is the first thing to get cut”.

Years & Years released their debut album Communion last year, which reached No 1 on the UK albums chart and No 47 on the Billboard 200. The record has sold over 1 million copies to date and was 2015s’ fastest selling debut album from a UK signed band.

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