Mike King stands by statement that ‘alcohol is a solution’

Thursday, 31 October 2024

Labour is calling for the Government to “pause” and review its $24 million contract with Mike King’s youth counselling service Gumboot Friday after King said alcohol was a “solution for people with mental health issues”.

“The comments are deeply problematic and fly in the face of well-established body of literature that links alcohol use both directly and indirectly with mental ill health, including with suicide risk,” Labour’s mental health spokesperson Ingrid Leary said.

“To continue to fund Gumboot Friday sends a message to young people that alcohol use is a recognised treatment for mental health issues.”

Mental Health Minister Matt Doocey also said he “disagrees” with King’s comments.

King first made the claim in a NewstalkZB radio interview on Wednesday when he was asked about a fashion fundraiser for suicide prevention in Dunedin, which was having trouble gaining an alcohol licence from the council.

King said any alcohol ban would be “classic overreach”, and then said drinking could be a solution for people with mental health. He then stood by his comments in a statement to Stuff, which he labelled “context”.

“Drugs and alcohol are not a problem to addicts, they are a solution to our problem until a proper solution can be found,” King said in a statement.

King also pointed to a number of studies exploring a “self medication hypothesis”.

Hipkins: ‘It’s a dangerous view’

Labour Party leader Chris Hipkins said the Government needed to find out whether Mike King was expressing a personal view, or one also held by Gumboot Friday, “because it's a dangerous view”.

“I think this is the risk of the approach that this Government have taken, where they have cherry picked one organisation to the detriment of many others who are doing great work in the mental health space,” he told reporters in Auckland.

“And I think that they haven’t gone through a proper process there, and that means that these these comments by him, should be of concern to the Government.”

Hipkins added there were a lot of mental health organisations who have had to scale back their services. “They’re certainly not out there at the moment telling people to go and have a drink if they’re experiencing mental health problems.

“I think this is a comment that will cause a lot of New Zealanders to look at that and say and question the credibility of Mike King as an advocate for mental health arguing for people who are feeling in mental distress to have a drink.”

Ministers disagree with King

Responding to the comments, Doocey said he disagreed.

“Excess alcohol consumption can cause a lot of harm in our communities, that is why this Government is taking alcohol harm seriously, which is evident by for the first time in 15 years the Government recently raised the alcohol levy,” Doocey said in a statement.

“Alcohol does affect the part of your brain that controls inhibition, so people may feel relaxed, less anxious, and more confident after a drink. But these effects do quickly wear off.”

Speaking from Nelson, Health Minister Dr Shane Reti said the Government “respects the work” Mike King has done, but could not make a call on King’s comments without seeing them first.

“I would need to see exactly what statements were made to offer an authoritative view on that,” he said.

Reti was pressed by journalists in Nelson on whether it was still appropriate for King’s Gumboot Friday youth counselling initiative to have been awarded a $24m contract, considering King’s comments contradicted research.

“Minister Doocey along with officials have made a decision that he has a service that provides valuable contributions to New Zealanders,” Reti said.

The Government’s 2018 inquiry into mental health and addiction found harmful alcohol use had significant impacts on an individual’s health and society, including causing damage to developing brains (from in utero to adolescence), impairing self-control, and playing a role in at least half of youth suicides and one-third of recorded offences.

Doocey’s statement said: “The funding that has been provided to contract the I Am Hope Foundation will allow young people aged between 5-25 to have access to free mental health counselling.”

“My interest remains with the additional 15,000 young New Zealanders a year who are able to access free mental health support due to the funding that has been provided.”

Earlier $24m contract scrutiny

King’s contract has faced consistent scrutiny since it was awarded this year.

The Auditor General earlier this month found the Government’s processes around the contract were “inconsistent and unusual” and the Ministry of Health did not fully inform ministers of the risks.

John Ryan, who as the auditor general oversees every public entity and public spending, sent the Ministry of Health a letter outlining his concerns with the processes around the charity’s contract, noting the “challenging situation” it created for officials, and warned he would be monitoring the contract.

He wrote public money must be spent prudently, and with due attention to transparency, integrity, accountability and value for money - and asserted that “several aspects” of the contract’s process were “unusual and inconsistent with these principles”.

Also among his concerns was that there was “no opportunity for a fair, open, or competitive procurement process,” and that funding was tied to a supplier, rather than a policy initiative.

Funding the charity $6m a year was in the National-NZ First coalition agreement. It has been in the spotlight since Stuff revealed its chair had donated to the National Party, and its former chief executive in 2019 had sought the National Party candidacy for Botany, in Auckland.

King also changed the title of one of his most senior staff after Stuff revealed the woman was not qualified for such a role.

Where to get help

• 1737, Need to talk? Free call or text 1737 to talk to a trained counsellor.

• Anxiety New Zealand 0800 ANXIETY (0800 269 4389)

• Depression.org.nz 0800 111 757 or text 4202

• Lifeline 0800 543 354

• Rural Support Trust 0800 787 254

• Samaritans 0800 726 666

• Suicide Crisis Helpline 0508 828 865 (0508 TAUTOKO)

• Yellow Brick Road 0800 732 825

• thelowdown.co.nz Web chat, email chat or free text 5626

• What's Up 0800 942 8787 (for 5 to 18-year-olds). Phone counselling available Monday-Friday, noon-11pm and weekends, 3pm-11pm. Online chat is available 3pm-10pm daily.

• Youthline 0800 376 633, free text 234, email talk@youthline.co.nz, or find online chat and other support options here.

• If it is an emergency, click here to find the number for your local crisis assessment team.

• In a life-threatening situation, call 111.

An earlier version of this story said the Government’s inquiry into mental health and addiction took place in 2021. It was in 2018. (Amended 5.42pm, October 31).