Gino Kenny (Dublin Mid West, People Before Profit Alliance) | Oireachtas source

I thank the groups for their submissions. They were very insightful on what has happened during the past four months in the public health emergency. There is a juxtaposition between the amazing outpouring of solidarity and support, with people coming together across society, which might not normally happen, and self-isolation and the isolation of the public health emergency.

It has taken a significant toll on many people and is almost unquantifiable in terms of its extent. The unintended consequences that will arise as a result will probably be with us for a long time.

The fault lines in the public services that have not met the needs or demands of the populace through the past 12 months have become clear in the past four months. There has been much reference to pent-up economic demand, but there will be significant pent-up demand for mental health services. Can that demand be met through the resources currently available to mental health services?

The submission of the Mental Health Commission states that 114 staffed community residences are unregulated. Why are they unregulated? Alarm bells ring when one sees the word "unregulated". Who is regulating those services? Such regulation is of particular importance currently, in what is, for most people, an extremely challenging time.

My first and substantial question was whether mental health services can meet the demand that will inevitably arise as a result of the current public health emergency.