The government promised to cut deaths from suicide by 20 per cent within 10 years, yet three years later it has still not produced a strategy and is missing its target. Meanwhile deaths from suicide are up by one per cent.

The decision of nice on modern atypical drugs for mental health sufferers is an important one. It is wrong if an individual is not given the choice of medicines with fewer side effects, particularly where the medicine is given compulsorily. It is a disgrace that the decision has taken so long. Why should one of the most innovative countries in Europe be one of the slowest to allow patients to receive new treatments?

The use of modern medicines is not the only issue facing mental health sufferers. Users, carers and staff all tell me of their concerns that the government is simply failing to deliver on its mental health promises.

There was an initial welcome for its plans, but this has turned to disillusion because so little change has been seen on the ground. We were told that mental health was to be a priority, but for users, carers and staff it does not feel like it. After promising a great deal, the government seems to have forgotten about mental health sufferers. The government promised to cut deaths from suicide by 20 per cent within 10 years, yet three years later it has still not produced a strategy and is missing its target. Meanwhile deaths from suicide are up by one per cent.

In 1999 the government also promised a much-needed new Mental Health Bill but, again, three years later we find ourselves without one - letting down all those people who need our help. This is all the more surprising, as everyone agrees that the system for assessment and sectioning needs reform (although not about the detail of the government's proposals) - yet still, no bill.

The government is now halfway through the time it set itself to achieve its targets in the Mental Health National Service Framework, but the latest figures show that it is falling far short. A crisis for somebody suffering from mental illness can be a matter of life and death. The government promised 335 crisis resolution teams, but so far only 52 have been established. Only four per cent of local teams have complete services in place.

For young people there is no indication as to when the mental health module of the Children's National Service Framework is to be ready. Only 16 of the promised 50 early intervention teams have been established.

Additionally the Audit Commission has recently expressed its concern that specialist teams for older people with mental health problems were only fully available in less than half of all areas - and less than half of GPs had received sufficient training to help them diagnose and manage dementia.

Carers are the main support for those with mental illness, yet the government's promise of 700 extra staff to enable carers to have much needed breaks, has so far led to not one single extra person being employed. There were also to be 1,000 new graduate primary care workers but the government does not even have a system to monitor the target.

Apart from the concerns about delivery of targets, there is increasing evidence that money for mental health is not reaching those who need it, leaving government promises unrealised. The way in which a nation treats its mentally ill is a mark of how civilised and humane the society is. Sadly the outlook in this country is bleak. The government cannot afford just to talk about mental health - it must actually do something.

A written Parliamentary Answer from the Minister, Jacqui Smith MP, has shown that none of the funds earmarked for health authorities are protected or ringfenced, and that £15 million allocated for mental health is being held centrally with no indication of how it will be spent.

This news comes on top of evidence late last year that mental health services for children did not receive £10 million allocated to it. The message that I hear from those on the ground is that the money just does not reach the front line. It is all too easy, given the lack of ringfencing, for money to be moved from mental health into other more "popular" areas.

This state of affairs cannot be allowed to continue - particularly in the field of children's mental health. The film A Beautiful Mind demonstrates just why it is such an important area for investment. Ignoring it is short-sighted and means more expenditure further down the line.

Finally, the issue of choice is one which MIND is currently highlighting in its "My Choice" campaign. When I attended the launch at The King's Fund, I was very impressed by the evidence that modern medicines and other treatments taken together, can lead to significant improvements for patients. But unless the funding reaches the front line there will not be genuine choice for patients. So the long-delayed decision of NICE on the use of modern atypical medicines is very important - but so are the issues of accessibility and choice. We need a new Mental Health Bill. We need money to reach the front line and we need a genuine choice for patients. But above all, we need the political will to ensure that mental health is not the "Cinderella" service.