Mary Lou McDonald (Dublin Central, Sinn Fein) | Oireachtas source

It is true to say that a lot of progress has been made in raising public awareness and understanding of mental health, emotional well-being, suicide and other self-harm. It would be foolish, however, to think for a second that all the stigma and fear surrounding these issues have been overcome.

Public representatives must be part of an open dialogue in partnership with the communities we represent. That compassionate conversation must honestly begin to tackle prejudice, fear and isolation. Massive credit is due to the many brave individuals who have experienced mental health or emotional well-being issues, including suicide, personally or in their own families. Through their own drive, passion and initiative they have founded a plethora of local community organisations throughout the country. They have been key to opening the door for others, letting people know that they have somewhere to turn and are not alone. Such initiatives go against the old, hard-chaw, pull yourself together attitude that may have typified earlier responses to people in mental or emotional crises.

We must recognise that we all have a part to play in this. It is an issue that concerns every Deputy, Senator and citizen. We need to bring that conversation to communities in towns and villages throughout the country. Our goal must be to end stigma, discrimination and isolation.

Mental health and emotional difficulties respect no boundaries of class or colour. They are as likely to affect one individual or family as the next.

It is not unusual at all for somebody to experience a mental illness. It is even more common for people to experience emotional ill health and pressure and, sadly, for many people, suicide and self-harm loom large. We can all make a difference. I commend the Minister of State, Deputy McEntee, on her appointment and she has a particular role to play.

Let us not make any bones about it. It is not that we are facing into a crisis in our mental and emotional health; we are in the middle of a crisis. All the statistics, which I will not recite, tell us that. We have heard them many times in the House. In a crisis situation, crisis responses are required. The challenge for the Government and the system is not only to say the right things and lead that compassionate conversation, but it is also about resources. To put it a little crudely, it is about the system putting its money where its mouth is. A fraction of Government budgets is spent on suicide prevention. If the moneys dedicated to road safety and accident prevention measures, worthy as they are, are weighed against the amount dedicated to suicide prevention, it tells a story, which is that the system does not yet understand or prioritise the issue in the way it should and it must.

I refer to CAMHS, in particular. All of us know there is a crisis in these services and all of us know about the waiting lists and the desperation of families across the State trying to access them. That needs to be sorted out. A Vision for Change is ten years old and it is being reviewed but it has not been fully implemented. Let us vow and give a commitment collectively that we will not allow another year, five years or ten years to pass without this commonly agreed strategy being implemented and properly resourced. The staffing crisis in the services is most dramatically underscored by the fact that the Psychiatric Nurses Association has a ballot for industrial action up to including strike action. This is not because they do not care about their service users. On the contrary, this is a response to what they correctly call "the staffing crisis in the mental health services". That is where it sits. Human desperation and all the pressures we are familiar with and that speak to our common humanity have people reaching out for help and finding in so many instances that it is not there. We, as politicians, the Government and the Minister of State need to ensure resources are provided and the €12 million that was to be ring-fenced from the health budget is reinstated, drawn down and spent on these essential services.

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