Ms Kate Mitchell:

Following on from the previous comment, the information on the number of staff members in mental health services who are from various ethnic minority groups is not available. There really is a need to recruit mental health staff from various ethnic minorities, including the Traveller community. One of the recommendations in the mental health report and the guidelines, published in collaboration with the Mental Health Commission, emphasises the recruitment of staff from various ethnic minorities. We urge the committee to consider this in making its recommendations.