Emer Higgins (Dublin Mid West, Fine Gael) | Oireachtas source

I apologise for being late. I am also participating in a housing committee meeting at the same time and none of us have mastered the art of bilocation. I thank the witnesses. I read their statements beforehand, and found it interesting to listen to the dialogue around this. I thank each of the witnesses and their teams who work in challenging situations. From the testimony given, and from all I have read, they seem to do incredible jobs looking at innovative ways to engage with people and have a positive impact on their lives. I will also put on the record my thanks to people who give up to their time with prison visiting committees. They also have a positive role to play when it comes to consultation and gathering of information and data. When it comes to data, it is great to hear of the investment in information systems to manage, monitor and react to trends. That is progressive. It is also fantastic to hear the discussion on Senator Ruane's project with Trinity College graduates and their ability to give diagnoses to young offenders aged from 18 to 24. When will that pilot start?

I was quite struck by what Mr. Black said about Cloverhill being one of the largest facilities when it comes to mental health. The new mental health unit for 50 people is very progressive and I would love to learn a little more about the level of investment that has been put in to make that happen. It is fantastic to hear Dr. Regan talk about having the funding required for psychological posts and that the issue is about filling them. One statement we never hear at this committee is the one that Mr. Black made when he said, "We have the money", which is great to hear. It is great to hear that the Government is investing in this area because it is so important. I ask Mr. Black to talk about the impact the investment in the new facility, mental health services and rehabilitation will have.

It is good to hear about what our guests are doing in the career fairs and about the brand new assistant psychology posts that they pioneered. I come from a business background where I would have had a lot to do with recruitment and retention and they are bringing me back to those days. It is great to hear there is so much happening in this space. It sounds like our guests really are at the cutting edge when it comes to innovation, creativity and thinking outside the box in order to get people in to their recruitment database. I would love to hear about that pipeline and any difficulties our guests are experiencing with which we could help. I know that security clearance by An Garda Síochána can be very elongated. Is that the same for the Irish Prison Servicer? Is that something this committee can raise on the service's behalf with the Minister, to try to see if we can get some prioritisation happening there? I know it is not as simple as getting Garda clearance. It is obviously a lot more detailed than that and while we do not want to rush anything and cause any undue issues, at the same time it is very important that when people express an interest and go through the hiring process that they are actually hired andin situas quickly as possible. Are there any unnecessary delays we could help to unblock?

It is great to hear about the men's sheds as well. That is really good because as our guests have said, when people are released having a support network in the community can help them to settle back in. In summary, my questions are on when the Senator Lynn Ruane project will happen, the investment in the new mental health facility, what that is going to look like from a service user's perspective and recruitment and retention.