Pádraig Mac Lochlainn (Donegal North East, Sinn Fein) | Oireachtas source

Obviously, the issue of consultation is a source of concern and many independent agencies have already been established by the Government. The best way to put these concerns is to quote what the respected Senator Jillian van Turnhout said during the Seanad debate:

...it places the service within the remit of the Department of Health rather than the Department of Justice and Equality. Since legal capacity matters should probably be regarded as a matter for the Department of Justice and Equality, I question this move. Could this lead to confusion because decision support issues might be confused with mental health issues? Since the remit of the decision support service is much broader than mental health, I wonder about establishing it under the Mental Health Commission.

I would have thought that this function would have been better established as an independent authority similar to the National Disability Authority with reporting responsibilities to the Department of Justice and Equality.

This move has been made at the very last minute in drafting the Bill without consultation, but we will leave it there, as we have had this discussion already. The points the Senator made are very important. Placing this authority within the Mental Health Commission is not the best fit. This is no reflection on the commission. The Senator has made some key points and expressed them better than I have today. The issue goes beyond consultation and the need for an independent authority. We know that other independent agencies have been established. I can reiterate the points made. The problem is that the reporting mechanism is uner the Department of Health rather than the Department of Justice and Equality. These are legal capacity matters which should not be confused with mental health matters. Senator Jillian van Turnhout made very strong points which have not yet been addressed.

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