John Moloney (Laois-Offaly, Fianna Fail)

I understand why Members quite properly wish to tease this out. The agency referred to is known as Nationwide Health Solutions. It has not come into existence this week but has been operating since 2006. I confirmed in my earlier response that it depends on protocols. I understand the worry in that regard. However, there is only one agency operating in the country. To remove doubt as to whether people are professionally trained or in a position properly to bring somebody involuntarily to an institution, all the staff involved up to now have been qualified psychiatric nurses. I accept that the future is the issue. I do not wish to labour the point but the reason the legislation is before the House is due to the time constraint and the High Court judgment. More importantly, the HSE on approximately 204 occasions was obliged to use outside agencies to bring in people involuntarily because it did not have the staff required to do so. It was an attempt to ensure that people who could harm themselves or others could be transferred professionally by people with the appropriate qualifications to do that.

The safeguard is the involvement at all times of the Mental Health Commission. With regard to protocols, the Mental Health Commission will have an involvement and oversight regarding the guidelines to which Nationwide Health Solutions will conform.

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