Health Secretary Sajid Javid has said he still wonders whether he “could have made a difference” before his older brother committed suicide almost four years ago.
In a highly personal interview, the Cabinet minister revealed the family had not been aware of Tariq Javid's physical health problem before he took his own life.
The 51-year-old supermarket chain boss was found dead in a hotel room while the Tory minister was serving as Home Secretary.
Opening up about his brother’s death, Mr Javid said he still wonders “maybe I could have made a difference”, adding: “I guess I will never know the answer to that.”
In July 2018, Mr Javid’s brother Tariq took his own life at a hotel in Horsham, West Sussex.
He had left two suicide notes, including one that told Sylvia, his partner of 15 years, that she should “carry on and enjoy life”.
On a visit to a suicide prevention charity, the Health Secretary said: “This is something that is deeply personal to me - there are too many families that are left incomplete and too much potential has gone unfulfilled."
He told The Sunday Times : “We learned afterwards that he had a physical health problem that he hadn’t told anyone about... and if we had just known, if he had talked to us, perhaps we could have done something.
"So you think about that. Maybe I could have made a difference. And I guess I will never know the answer to that.”
He went on: “This has been a very personal experience for me but it’s by no means unique.
“Sadly many thousands of people take their own lives each year and the numbers are going up.
“Obviously I want to find out what more we can do to prevent that and when it does happen to support people who are left behind.
"I feel that I am in a privileged position to do more about this because of my own experience and because I am the secretary of state for health.”
Mr Javid announced that the Government would be publishing a new 10-year suicide prevention plan, including a surveillance programme that will look out for patterns that put people at risk.
But campaigners have warned that mental health support is already woefully underfunded.
If you are affected by any of the issues raised in this article, call the Samaritans on 116 123 or visit samaritans.org.
