Peter Burke (Longford-Westmeath, Fine Gael) | Oireachtas source

As this is my first time to address the House I take this opportunity to thank the people of my home town of Mullingar and of Longford-Westmeath for electing me as their representative in Dáil Éireann. I will bring all my energy and commitment to representing my constituents, urban and rural, with integrity and to the best of my ability.

The area of mental health must remain a strong priority at the heart of Government. Encouraging positive mental health and well-being is vital to our population. I would welcome the allocation of €35 million for new developments in this sector and for this to be provided for in the base budget for 2017. I welcome that mental health services will receive the largest increase, in percentage terms, of any service area in 2016.

I acknowledge that we face serious challenges in this sector. A lot has been done to meet those challenges. We must expedite the move away from traditional institutional care to patient-centred, flexible and community based mental health services.

My view is that we need to bring our constituents' experiences of the sector to the forefront in order to find solutions to get a better service for all.

I am very concerned about the approach of the HSE towards young, vulnerable people with disabilities and their families. I am currently advocating for a family whose son is in an institution which is clearly an inappropriate setting for a young man with a disability. The use of language by the organisation such as "making a business case" is regrettable and hurtful to families. Suitable support measures prevent further crises and future admissions to psychiatric institutions which, in this case, are not the correct place to address the needs of this young man. I call on the HSE to take account of this.

I welcome the approval of 1,550 new posts to enhance community services. I acknowledge the huge work being carried out by the voluntary sector, which has not only saved countless lives but also been a huge support to families. In my town of Mullingar, we have numerous initiatives, such as the Good2Talk counselling services and Hugs for Hope, creating essential awareness together with the national event Darkness Into Light, which is due to take place on the 7 May in aid of Pieta House. On the end of many telephone lines stand voluntary service providers, to which we urgently need to provide more resources.

I call for the national strategy to reduce suicide, Connecting for Life, to receive the resources it needs to ensure it fulfils its objective. Most of us have been affected by suicide. Some 272 submissions from people and organisations were received in a collaborative and inclusive process. We need to continue to raise awareness and provide safe and high quality services. The incoming Government needs to implement this strategy urgently.

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