MPs say woefully inadequate eating-disorder care is costing lives

One of the MPs, Labour’s Richard Quigley, has been through the “nightmare” of watching his own child battle an eating disorder.

“To watch someone who is bright and funny and clever just look lost and scared because there’s no treatment coming – you feel like you’re letting your child down,” he says.

As part of its long-term plans, NHS England says it has invested additional funding to improve waiting times for eating-disorder services and more than £1bn a year goes into the provision of community mental-health care for adults.

But Mr Quigley says services are “beyond broken”, far more investment is needed, which would save the NHS money in the long term, and specific training should be rolled out for GPs, dentists and carers.

“We’re not just talking about a half day of training here,” he says.

“We’re talking about days over a year to fully understand the nuances of, not just eating disorders, but the different types of eating disorders.”