Northern Ireland has one of the highest incidences of |mental illness in the developed world, it has emerged.

Mental anxiety costs the economy here £380m a year.

The new findings were |unveiled at the launch of the University of Ulster’s groundbreaking new Centre for Study of Mental Health in Londonderry yesterday.

The centre has been named after the late Professor David Bamford, who carried out a wide-ranging review into mental health services in 2002, and will co-ordinate the work of 40 academic and post-graduate students.

Professor Brendan Bunting, director of the new Bamford Centre, revealed that a study |by the centre’s academics involving detailed interviews with 4,300 members of the public in Northern Ireland found that many people were waiting 20 years before seeking help.

One of the main findings was that in any 12-month period |in Northern Ireland one in |four people displayed symptoms of mental health conditions.

The bill for treating anxiety, which now affects 15% of people here, stands at £95m.

Professor Bunting said: “People with depression were among the most likely to seek treatment early, waiting on average a year, although over 25% of individuals in this category waited 10 years or more before seeking treatment.

“However, those with anxiety disorders waited on average 20 years before asking for help. Individuals with substance disorders waited on average 15 years.”

Levels of mental illness were 25% higher here than in Britain, while funding was 25% less.