Ms Orla Barry:

The HSE is reporting that approximately 500 of the posts are filled. Because of the posts that are being maintained, the reality is that there are only 192 extra posts within the HSE's mental health services in comparison to January. The moratorium on staff recruitment means that if people are given short-term contracts and they later move on the posts are not filled. Some of these positions were filled by people already employed within the HSE, and backfilling has not occurred. There have been serious problems in terms of recruitment and retention of those posts within the community mental health services.