Mary Seery Kearney (Fine Gael) | Oireachtas source

I thank the Chair.

Given that we have a representative of the Mental Health Commission here, its recent report shows that when it comes to the use of restraint and people being secluded in the past year, the findings are very stark with a rate of 6% and seclusion periods of anything between three minutes and - to wait for it - 8,759 hours in one whole year that an individual has been secluded. We are dealing with someone who is particularly vulnerable in that situation. They are really frightening statistics from the Mental Health Commission and I congratulate it on its report. One thing that jars with me around the optional protocol is that all internal processes of the State must be exhausted before we get to have another hearing that is completely outside of the State. For individuals who have been subjected to a situation like that, and I am not referring to that particular individual, how do such people go through an entire court process and exercise their rights that would come with the optional protocol, when they are already vulnerable and have already been subjected to this? There is perhaps a person who would have been adjudicated not to have capacity versus people who were in capacity and are maybe medical practitioners. Could somebody explain to me how that will work?