Colm Keaveney (Galway East, Fianna Fail) | Oireachtas source

We have always held the view that this legislation is far from perfect. The Minister of State stated earlier that work on the transfer of the Decision Support Service, DSS, from the Courts Service to the Mental Health Commission will commence in the next couple of weeks. Perhaps she would elaborate further on that point. The Minister of State also said that the service user is to be given the choice of engaging with the Mental Health Commission or the Courts Service, which speaks for itself. As I said, this legislation is far from perfect. It is important, in the context of the process that will take place in the forthcoming months, that stakeholders are afforded an opportunity to engage on how the DSS will function and operate, taking into account the human rights and concerns of the citizen affected. It is also important that we know how this service is to be resourced by the commission. I am interested in hearing the Minister of State's response to those questions in the context of the very crafted reply she read out earlier in relation to a previous amendment. The upcoming process may afford an opportunity to assuage the fears of the stakeholders involved that the Mental Health Commission, as opposed to the Courts Service, is the right location, in terms of its environment, language and culture, for the DSS.

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