Oxford University researchers called for social factors such as poverty and homelessness to be taken into account rather than the focus being purely on mental health in tackling suicide.

On World Suicide Prevention Day (Tuesday, September 10)  The Samaritans said there remains a “taboo” when it comes to speaking about taking your own life.

And the charity called on Prime Minister Sir Keir Starmer to “speak up” and demonstrate his commitment to preventing more lives being lost this way.

The Samaritans said its research earlier this year suggested almost half (46 per cent) of the population would not start a conversation about suicide with someone they were concerned about, even if they knew that person was experiencing suicidal thoughts.

Figures published last month by the Office for National Statistics (ONS) showed suicide rates registered in England and Wales in 2023 were the highest in more than two decades.

There were 6,069 suicides registered in the two nations in 2023, up from 5,642 in 2022.

The rate of 11.4 deaths per 100,000 people in 2023 was the highest rate seen since 1999.

Meanwhile, research by global experts, led by the University of Oxford, has called for a “change in the narrative” to a wider acknowledgement of factors such as poverty, debt, addictions, homelessness, abuse, discrimination and social isolation.

Professor Keith Hawton, from the university’s centre for suicide research, said: “Suicide is a societal issue that requires a societal response.

"Many suicides are preventable and public health strategies generally have the biggest impacts on reducing population suicide rates.”

On the University of Oxford-led research, Samaritans chief executive Julie Bentley said suicide is “complex” and that different factors can increase risk, including financial deprivation and abuse, as she called for a “cross-government approach” to tackling these problems.

She said: “Suicide rates are at their highest in more than 20 years and we are still waiting to hear from the Government about what they are going to do to reverse this.

“This World Suicide Prevention Day, the Prime Minister needs to speak up and demonstrate his commitment to suicide prevention with a clear plan of action before more lives are lost.”

A Department for Health and Social Care spokesperson said: “Every suicide is a tragedy, and World Suicide Prevention Day is an important reminder of why we need to take action.

“We will fix our broken mental health services. As part of our mission to reduce the lives lost to suicide, the 8,500 new mental health workers we will recruit will be specially trained to support people at risk.

“Our plans to put mental health support in every school and walk-in hubs in every community will help prevent mental health issues from becoming more serious.”

Samaritans can be contacted for free, 24/7, on 116 123, or visit www.samaritans.org