Liam Quaide (Cork East, Social Democrats)

I emailed Mr. Gloster about another point. I do not know if he had a chance to look at it. Due to my role in mental health I have a strong focus on people with severe and enduring mental health difficulties. They fall under the ambit of this committee, particularly given the focus we have on the UN Convention on the Rights of People with Disabilities. This is a cohort of people who suffered hugely throughout their lives. They often require ongoing intensive multidisciplinary support and, sometimes, residential placement to attain stability and a decent quality of life. I met Mr. Gloster in June 2023 with former Deputy, Neasa Hourigan. We both raised concerns with him about a proposal by the HSE to invest €64 million in a 50-bed residential mental health service on the grounds of St. Stephen's Hospital in Glanmire. St. Stephen's Hospital in Glanmire is the site of a new elective hospital, which is very appropriate. It is also an appropriate location, in my view, for acute mental health admissions. It is not a place where people should be living out significant periods of their lives, as is the case with any community mental health residence. St. Stephen's Hospital is 1.7 km walk from the nearest shop of any description, which is a service station. It is a 3 km walk to Riverstown, where the local SuperValu and a few other shops are. There is not even a footpath from St. Stephen's Hospital to those places. It is not remotely integrated into any community setting. This is going to centralise a huge amount of the funding. A figure of €64 million is projected for that capital investment into a service that will be very far removed from the communities of origin of many of the residents there. It is going to draw in people from far-flung places in County Cork. It is completely at odds with every mental health policy that we have had since the 1980s. It is at odds with the UN Convention on the Rights of People with Disabilities. I have had huge frustration trying to remonstrate with the HSE locally on that. I implore Mr. Gloster to look at this. He knows from his time at Tusla that there was a residential unit for young people which was not suitable for them. It is not suitable for adults to be living on the site of a hospital. People with-----