Who helps with the ’emotional toll’ of being an MP?
The job of a Member of Parliament (MP) comes with a great deal of pressure and responsibility. The long hours, the sense of responsibility, the turmoil of electorate work, and the frequent media interactions can all take a toll on an MP’s mental health.
There are some avenues available for help in the system. A first port of call that an MP can go to is usually the party whip. Whips provide support and guidance to MPs and can help them to understand where they need to deliver. They also provide pastoral care and can support MPs with issues they’re facing.
Parliament also provides MPs with Employee Assistance Programmes (EAPs), which are confidential services that can provide wellbeing or mental health support.
However, some MPs still suffer in silence. There is a stigma around mental health issues, and some MPs may be reluctant to seek help.
Former MP Grant Robertson believes that MPs should have access to a counsellor, coach or some support person. He said that only relatively late in his 15-year Parliamentary career did he come to realise the importance of having someone to talk to about the emotional toll of the job.
“Often you are dealing with people’s worst experiences. And there are MPs in the past who in the face of that have not actually coped. And have done things that have actually really damaged their career, partly because they weren’t coping with the mental toll of the job.”
MPs find their own ways of dealing with the stress. Some MPs lean on their staff for support. Others talk to senior MPs or friends outside of Parliament. Some MPs find solace in hobbies like knitting or spending time with family.
Chief Whip Scott Simpson believes that the key to providing support is listening. He said that whips are constantly talking and listening to colleagues about the challenges they are facing.
“I think that’s not necessarily any different to any other workplace environment or situation. Often we are quick to talk and not very quick to listen, and sometimes the listening is every bit as important as anything that we might say or do.”
MPs also say that forging connections and friendships with other MPs beyond their own party is another way of coping with the stresses. After all, criticising and attacking each other during Question Time or debates is only one part of what goes on in Parliament.
Matt Doocey, the National MP for Waimakariri, said he had been encouraged by the cross-party MPs’ mental health group, which he established a few years ago with former Labour MP Louisa Wall and the Green Party’s Chlöe Swarbrick.
“We genuinely believe, not only do we have differences as parties, but there’s a lot of commonalities. And if we can agree long-term policy settings in mental health irrespective of the three-year cycle, then we’re really going to drive it forward, and I’m quite excited about that.”
Mehek