Britain's ability to pay our way in the world. It is a taboo which must be broken if we are to rebuild Britain as One Nation. Mental health is subject we all, whoever we are, still instinctively avoid. At home, in the workplace and in our communities, it tends to be brushed under the carpet. Teachers and our parents are unlikely to talk to us about mental illness when we are young. And we all fear the unknown. Today in 2012, far too many people in this country still feel as if they have to pretend they have something else wrong with them when they are struggling with depression. People can be scared to tell their boss. Intimidated by the culture that still surrounds mental illness. Scared into silence. And it's not just their employers. It's their family and friends who don't know how to react either. As Kevan Jones, a Labour MP who has bravely spoken out about his own depression, said to me recently: if you have a serious physical illness, the get well messages tend to flood in. But when a friend of his was struggling with depression recently and Kevan sent him a message, his friend told him it was the only one he had received. Mental ill health can affect anyone, but it is more openly talked about in some sections of society than others. For people to talk about it and get help, there needs to be a common language and understanding. If it