Mr. Éamonn Ó Briain:

This year 14 comhairlí are dealing with topics relating to mental health. Mental health is an issue discussed regularly by all comhairlí across the country. The issues that continually arise in this area are: the lack of mental health services; and the lack of awareness among teenagers about mental health services. The Comhairle na nÓg national executive met Mr. Martin Rogan, the HSE's national direct for mental health, to discuss such services.

After meeting him it was clear that although there are mental health services for young people, they do not know about them or how to access them. Various comhairlí are working on this issue, including comhairlí in County Louth and in Limerick city. The Comhairle na nÓg mental health initiatives are described in the national showcase programme.

The Limerick city Comhairle na nÓg is working on the promotion of positive mental health. It plans to develop a resource pack for young people, including information on local services and coping mechanisms to deal with stress. Its members surveyed 200 young people to find out what stresses them, how they deal with this stress and their knowledge of local services.