Lengthy waiting times for mental health treatment are tantamount to turning people away, the retiring Moderator of the Church of Scotland's General Assembly has said.

The Right Rev Dr Martin Fair welcomed evidence that politicians were taking the issue seriously but also called on the church and communities to play a part in supporting people with mental health problems.

Days away from ending his year of office, Dr Fair said: "I came into this year saying we must focus on poor mental health – that was a pandemic long before anybody ever heard of Covid and Scotland has poor record. That was my thought at the beginning of the year. Here we are at the end and it's no different. If anything the issues are harder now because people have been isolated, people have been stressed."

Long mental health waiting times tantamount to turning people away, says retiring Kirk Moderator