Down and out

Former Cabinet minister Kiri Allan's fall from grace may well reflect the higher rates of mental ill health among MPs compared with the general populace.

- Marc Wilson

Crikey, it's dark when you get to work before 8am. For my mental well-being, I walk at least part of the way to work, do it early, and then leave correspondingly early for the return walk. This is a wee routine that I need to look after myself.

Today it also meant I was in my office for a radio invitation to talk about Kiri Allan's resignation from her ministerial portfolios. What commentary might I have about whether we expect too much of our MPs? What mental-health supports are in place for our MPs?

The call was framed around mental health, rather than alleged careless driving, or failing to accompany a police officer, because Prime Minister Chris Hipkins' press release goes on to place Allan's case in a context of mental well-being. I shall be interested to see how the Opposition choose to frame this. It wasn't so many years ago (2015) that Act leader David Seymour appeared to say depressed or anxious people, specifically students, should "harden up".

Personally, I think mental health is an important factor in helping us understand why someone might appear to go off the rails, but in many cases, it's also not an excuse.