Mental Health Act delay
Deputy Ward criticised the delay in publishing the Mental Health Act reform Bill and said the Government had missed a major opportunity. The Minister of State said the Bill was a priority drafting item and would be drafted in this session and published in the next Dáil session.
Many mental health stakeholders were left disappointed that the reform of the Mental Health Act was not included in the spring legislative programme for publication. This means the Bill will not be published until the middle of the year, if even then. In reality, it will not pass in the lifetime of the Government. Pre-legislative scrutiny of the Bill finished 15 months ago and reform of the Mental Health Act was on the programme for Government four years ago. The Government has missed a generational opportunity to put in place robust, person-centric mental health legislation that would protect the rights of people with mental health difficulties in the decades ahead. What is the reason for this delay? What is being done to ensure this legislation is published before the Government dissolves?
Comment on this
The Minister of State, Deputy Mary Butler, and the Department of Health are engaging with priority in regard to the publication of the mental health Bill in the next term. It is on the priority drafting list at the moment. It is a very complex area. The Deputy can have my assurances, as Chief Whip, that we will be doing everything to get it drafted in this session and then published in the following Dáil session.