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

I am not certain how much more I can emphasise this. The reason I was quoted as saying that was because I said it and I said it again in here this morning. Deputy Pádraug Mac Lochlainn does not have to quote the debate from the Seanad because I said it here this morning. The reason I said it is because I keep hearing about new politics and how we should do politics differently. I believe in having a personal view and being open and honest about what I believe. That is what I practice both in here and outside. It might not sit well with some people but that is what I practice.

In the Chamber, it was sought that the proposed body would be situated within the Department of Justice and Equality. To me, that would have been the wrong place to have it. It was wrong to have it in the courts and it would be wrong to have it within the Department of Justice and Equality. It would send out all the wrong signals.

Deputy Colm Keaveney is correct that the Mental Health Commission is the most independent of bodies. It is the expert body in terms of deprivation and allowing people to be heard. It is the most independent group which I know. This will need rebranding and negotiations in the next six months to figure out exactly how this will fit better than we can envisage now. We will be doing an extensive and comprehensive review paper on the Mental Health Commission and have permission to draw up a general scheme. In the process, there will be questions of what more can it do and what could be done differently. I would not deem to tell the commission because I respect its independence but if it wishes it can have a consultation process around how this will be managed better under its remit. That is as much as we can do on this.

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