Big Issue | scottishstoater/Unsplash
Rates of suicide, alcohol and drug fatalities (collectively known as “deaths of despair”) have increased by 9%, 45% and 81% respectively in England and Wales over the last decade. Given that mortality rates for most other causes are stable or decreasing, this increase is deeply concerning. In total, in 2022 these three causes accounted for 18,947 fatalities in England and Wales, almost one in 30 of the deaths recorded that year. The figures are even starker for younger people, with “deaths of despair” making up more than 40% of fatalities in the 25 to 29 age group.