Dan Neville (Limerick West, Fine Gael)

I thank the Labour Party for giving me the opportunity to raise the issue of the Government's neglect in dealing with the needs of psychiatric services and its failure to introduce suicide prevention policies. I will begin by quoting from the report on suicide of the Oireachtas Joint Committee on Health and Children which was launched today. Regarding mental health it states:

Those with mental illness are known to be at higher risk of death by suicide but the type of mental health service one can access is a matter of luck. Funding for mental health services is allocated in a random manner with scant regard for need. The provision of mental health services for adolescents is high on aspiration but low on action.

The Government has failed those of our people who suffer from an psychiatric illness. In 1997, 11% of the total health budget was allocated to psychiatric services. At a time when most of our European partners are increasing their relative contribution to the services, the Government has reduced its contribution from 11% to 7%.

The Government has scandalously failed patients with a mental illness, their families, mental health service professionals and service providers. It is of no concern to it that up to 500 people take their lives each year and that in excess of 60,000 attempt suicide and self-harm. It is of no concern to it that Ireland's youth suicide rate was the fifth highest of the 25 European Union countries in 2004 after Lithuania, Finland, Estonia and Latvia. It is politically immoral of the Government to neglect this issue.

This year the Government allocated a paltry sum of €1.2 million towards suicide prevention measures. It set up the national suicide prevention office which has not contributed anything other than to try to mask the inaction of the Government. To justify this, it recently hijacked the work of NGOs.

I support the motion to replace the Government with an alternative that will deal with the urgent need to develop psychiatric services, the appalling neglect of child and adolescent psychiatric services and tackle the serious public health issue of suicide and attempted suicide. Our people of all ages who are in such a personal crisis deserve no less.

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