First ’Health and Criminal Justice Tsar’ announced

University of Manchester Professor of Psychiatry Louis Appleby will be the first National Clinical Director for Health and Criminal Justice it was announced today (Wednesday). The move reflects an increased focus on improving the mental health of offenders and develops responsibilities from Professor Appleby's current work as National Clinical Director for Mental Health Services. Professor Appleby, who is Director of the University's Centre for Suicide Prevention, will champion the Government's action plan 'Improving Health, Supporting Justice', which sets out measures to get health and criminal justice services working together more effectively. The action plan aims to address health and social care problems as early as possible in a person's contact with the criminal justice system and to develop more effective interventions for offenders. This will be achieved by working closely with the cross-government Health and Criminal Justice Programme Board. Professor Appleby, who is also Director of the Manchester-based National Confidential Inquiry into Suicide and Homicide by People with Mental Illness, said: "Offenders have poor health and poor health care. My aim is to change this and, in particular, reduce the number of mentally ill people in prison.