Minister calls on internet to tackle suicides

Health Minister Michael McGimpsey has met with internet providers in attempts to tackle the growing problem of teenage suicides in Northern Ireland.

Mr McGimpsey met with providers including Vodafone, Bebo and Google and requested they confirm by the end of the month what action they plan to take.

The Health Minister also highlighted the growing danger of copycat suicides linked to internet useage and he pointed to the number of recent deaths which have been connected with social networking sites.

While also recognising the positive contribution the Web has made, he said: “The work undertaken so far must be welcomed, however what we need are preventative measures now. Young people are our most valuable resource we can not delay in putting in place strong measures aimed at protecting them.”

He continued: “In the last twelve months the rate of suicides in Northern Ireland has increased significantly and the internet has been cited as a contributory factor in some cases."

Between 2000 and 2004 there have been approximately 150 deaths by suicide. In 2006 there were 291 suicides recorded.

Mr McGimpsey said the problem is not just prevalent in Northern Ireland, but “has the potential to be repeated in other jurisdictions.”

“For that reason I will be raising this issue at my forthcoming meetings with my counterparts in the rest of the UK and the Republic of Ireland.”

Michael McGimpsey chairs the Ministerial Coordination Group on Suicide Prevention.

(JM/KMcA)