542. Deputy Joe Cooney asked the Minister for Health the budget allocation for mental health services for the years 2024, 2025 and to date in 2026, by health services region, in tabular form; her plans for increased investment in mental health services for 2027; and if she will make a statement on the matter. [54523/26]

I thank the deputy for his question. The Government’s clear commitment to enhancing mental health services is shown by significant mental health funding increases in recent years. I would note that Budget 2026 saw a record allocation for mental health services of almost €1.6bn, up over 50% since I assumed the role of Minister for Mental Health in 2020.

The additional funding for current expenditure in Budget 2026 for the Health Vote is €1.5 billion, bringing the total current allocation to €25.8 billion. This includes funding to maintain existing levels of service and for new service developments, including funding for the recruitment of 300 additional whole time equivalent staff within Mental Health in 2026.

This is the sixth year in a row in which the mental health budget has been increased. This increase in funding for mental health services represents a significant investment which will enable continued policy implementation and service improvement in line with our national mental health policy, Sharing the Vision, and our national suicide and self-harm reduction strategy Connecting for Life, across a broad continuum from mental health promotion, prevention and early intervention, through to specialist mental health services.

This year’s budget provided the opportunity to focus on investing in crisis support and suicide prevention; youth mental health and CAMHS, and expanding the National Clinical Programmes.

The HSE has published its National Service Plan for 2026, setting out how the HSE will operationalise the Department’s priorities funded in Budget 2026, including the key priorities of improved access, quality and safety for those who use our services and value for money for the public more broadly.

The National Service Plan includes HSE plans, targets and timelines for specific measures to be progressed in 2026

The table below outlines the budget allocation for HSE Mental Health Services since 2024:

In Ireland, focusing solely on the health budget, Budget 2026 brought the mental health allocation to 6% of the total allocated health budget.

However, it should be noted that funding for mental health supports is dispersed across many areas of Government, and there is no single funding figure to reflect this. For example, the figure of just under €1.6 billion does not include funding for other parts of the health service that provide mental health supports, such as Primary Care, Disability services, liaison mental health in acute hospitals, some dual diagnosis (addiction and mental health) services, and mental health and well-being promotion.

It also does not include either spending by other Departments on services that incorporate psychological or mental health supports, such as Tusla, the Department of Education, the Prison and Probation Services, Youth Justice, or Social Protection