MPs push for LGBT youth suicide plan

The Cabinet wants more attention for suicides amongst LGBT youths in The Netherlands. The D66 will plead for investigation into the motivations for young lesbian and gay men and women to commit suicide in a Parliamentary Debate with Minister Edith Schippers of Health, De Volkskrant reports. Schippers has an existing action plan for suicide prevention, which D66 MP Pia Dijkstra wants to be extended to especially LGBT (Lesbian, Gay, Bisexual Transvestite) youths. According to the MP, the suicide rate amongst this group is five times higher than hetero-youths. Between 2008 and 2012, the number of suicides among LGBT youths has risen with 20 percent. Research shows that the main cause for this rise is that people with non-hetero sexual orientations are bullied and teased. Dijkstra wants Schippers to introduce extra measures to prevent these vulnerable individuals from committing suicide.