Charlie McConalogue (Donegal North East, Fianna Fail)

-----numbers within the county. We are moving into community mental health care.

I am aware of a gentleman in his 80s who passed away recently. He entered a mental health care home over 60 years ago and spent his entire life there, from his late teenage years until his death. It is a legacy we have to address and ensure is never repeated. We are going a long way towards doing that but a lot remains to be done.

The appointment of a specific director who can take on and monitor responsibility is key. If a job of work needs to be done somebody needs to be in place on the Civil Service side to complement the fact that a Minister is responsible for it.

I commend the motion to the House and thank the Technical Group for highlighting the issue.

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