Jerry Buttimer (Cork South Central, Fine Gael)

I compliment Deputy Maureen O'Sullivan and the Minister of State, Deputy Kathleen Lynch, on the speeches they made last night. Those who have not read them should do so. As both the Minister of State and Deputy O'Sullivan pointed out, mental health has become the Cinderella of the health system. We believed the publication of A Vision for Change would deliver a new era, a new dawn and a new beginning and that all would be well as community based supports would be introduced and the gargantuan, horrific asylum approach to mental health services would end. Unfortunately, our hopes have not been realised.

I am confident the Minister of State, Deputy Lynch, will not walk away from the challenge of bringing about change and reform in the mental health service. The benchmark of the Government will be whether it delivers in the area of mental health. I say this having spent my entire life involved with people with intellectual disabilities. Relatives and friends of mine have suffered from mental health problems. I also worked as a porter in Cork University Hospital. I have had the pleasure of seeing people recover and of meeting past pupils who had suffered from mental health problems and had the courage to say they were in trouble and needed help and proceeded to make a determined effort to recover. Other friends did not make a recovery and did not complete the journey to a better place. Unfortunately, some of them are no longer with us while others are up to their eyes in medication. Over-prescribing and over-medication of patients are profound difficulties in the mental health system.

Given the importance of maintaining a cross-party approach to mental health services, it is regrettable that the House will divide on the motion. If we are honest, this issue affects every one of us, whether at home, in our extended family or in our local community. This is about the future and the Government leading, advocating and delivering a better mental health service. Well-being is important and one's sense of well-being is affected by simple matters such as the sun shining or television programmes such as the news. Deputy Regina Doherty spoke at length about stigma. While we have made strides in eroding the stigma associated with mental health, we must do much more in this regard. We need to change mindsets.

I welcome the Government's policy on developing primary care and related infrastructure. The capital investment programme provides for the development of a new central mental hospital. In addition, ten beds will be allocated for people with intellectual disability and the problem of children and adolescent mental health care will be tackled for the first time. Four regional centres for mental health services will also be established. Thanks to the Minister of State, Deputy Kathleen Lynch, the capital funding envelope has mental health services at its core.

I plead with the Minister of State, Deputy Sean Sherlock, to ensure the mental health intellectual rehabilitation unit for the south is located in Cork. It is imperative that the GF ward in Cork University Hospital is demolished and rebuilt. It is the only part of HSE south which has not been developed or modernised notwithstanding the great work done by staff on the ward. I hope the delivery of mental health services in the south will be transformed in 2012 with the development of a new GF ward.

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