Budget decisions that are urgent matters of life and death | Letters

Professor Wendy Burn on fears that promises of spending on mental health services will be broken; Colin Dyer of WellChild on the failure to prioritise the wellbeing of the young; Rev Paul Nicolson on inadequate benefits, poverty and ill health; plus, letters on housing and economic growth

There is a real and imminent danger that the promises made to improve mental health services for the millions of people who need them are about to be betrayed. This is because the chancellor failed to give the NHS the money it needs to continue to deliver current levels of care (Extra cash 'plugs some gaps but not all', warns top doctor, 23 November). Before the budget, the head of NHS England, Simon Stevens, warned that a cash shortfall would make it "increasingly difficult" to deliver on the government's promise to improve mental health services in the coming years.

The chancellor's failure to heed that warning means difficult choices will have to be made when NHS England's leaders meet to consider the budget next week. We are seeking an urgent commitment from NHS England and the government that the promised improvements to mental health services will be honoured. As shown by the case of girl X, highlighted by Sir James Munby this summer (Bed found for suicidal girl after judge's fury, 5 August), this is a matter of life and death for many of our most vulnerable citizens.

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