Kathleen Lynch (Cork North Central, Labour) | Oireachtas source

So that Deputy Wallace has no misunderstanding, I am not suggesting for one minute that if there is early intervention at primary level, it should discontinue at secondary level. I see it as a continuum because we have it at third level and we are introducing it at second level also. The Minister for Education and Skills, Deputy Quinn, is launching an extensive anti-bullying campaign and we intend to extend that. I do not disagree with anything the Deputy has said. I am just saying I believe we should start considerably earlier.

I point out to Deputy Mattie McGrath that we have the national office and it is not run on a day-to-day basis by the HSE. We have very good people in it. I agree with him that we need to take this to the next level and I have already had discussions with the new director of the national office. We have now gone past the time when people did not speak about these things because they were ashamed. Now that it is out in public we need very much to have an, as it were, in your face campaign specific to areas and age groups. I do not disagree with anything the Deputy said and we now need to take a step forward. It is a different time and a different campaign. We may be dealing with people with different expectations.

There was a difficulty last year. While I do not have it off the top of my head, I will get the information for Deputy Troy. I do not have a problem with distributing information on these issues. We all want the same outcome. A substantial number of the 414 posts that were to be recruited last year have been recruited and either have contracts or have already accepted. I have been guaranteed in written form that the €70 million - the €35 million from last year and the €35 million for this year - will be spent in community mental health teams. I have sought that guarantee and have been given it. I reassure the Deputy on that.

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