Christmas Wishes and Shocking Truths

Dear All,

Sorry for the lack of updates recently - this has been because there has been little to report as my family and I are just waiting for the courts to kick into gear in the judicial review into my mum's inquest. As I think we all know, a fight for justice such as my mum's case can take a very long time and be very drawn out, but this will not deter us from continuing.

Whilst we watch the inquest into the deaths of Diana, Princess of Wales, and Dodi Al-Fayed, continuing on the television day in and day out, we hope that we will one day be able to secure such a detailed investigation into our mum's death. The inquest into their deaths are important, but we hope that my mum's death is seen as just as important, as well as the potential impact on the Victorian system which caused her death.

We are pleased that Mind are still supporting us and believe that, without juries, inquests into deaths of people detained under the Mental Health Act are discriminatory. See their campaigning newsletter at http://www.mind.org.uk/NR/rdonlyres/FF355335-5079-48A1-A5D3-A27D8119F1E0/5956/MiA25.pdf.

On another less-than-happy point, an answer to a Parliamentary Question on 17th December showed that between a quarter and a fifth of all deaths of people in mental health institutions detained against their will are classed as 'unnatural'. This is a shocking 231 deaths between 2004 and 2006 alone, and shows the depths of the crisis in our mental health care in Britain. Details of the PQ can be found here.

It is with this in mind that, over the Christmas period, my family will be recuperating and redoubling our efforts to have my mum's case heard fairly, and to push for better safeguards for all. We now know that the government does not even collect figures on the number of inquests which are heard before a full jury, showing the sad disregard we seem to have for the most vulnerable people in our society.

Looking towards the festive period, my family and I wish you all a peaceful and restful period. We ask that you think about friends, family and others who will not be at home this Christmas, and will be forced to stay in mental health institutions, hidden and without the care and attention they have a right to receive.

If you have not done so, I urge you to sign the petition to call for greater transparency in inquests: just visit http://petitions.pm.gov.uk/Coroners/. It shouldn't take more than two minutes and we need at least 200 signatures before the end of January to get a response from the Government. Please also get everyone you know to sign too - a small effort will support our call for action greatly.

With kind wishes to you all,
Steven Allen