Michael McNamara (Clare, Independent) | Oireachtas source

I thank the Taoiseach. I greatly welcome his commitment to publishing data. I note that Ernst & Young have been brought in to crunch data. If those data are provided by the State or an organ of the State and collected with public moneys, they should also be made available. The most important point is the evidence and data available to NPHET, and the modelling code. Information about the code has been published but I am told by statisticians, and I am not a statistician, that it is not enough to do a comparison.

To return to the mental health data, I note the Taoiseach says there are data available. Will the Government publish the data that were available to it in the middle of October? The Taoiseach says the data are not complete but what was and was not available? We need to know that in a democracy. Will the Taoiseach commit to publishing that information? I am not asking him to get a lot of information. What information was available to the Government at the time and will he publish it by the end of this week or at least by this day next week? Also, has any study been done on the impact of the mental health tribunals? We have changed how they operate. Has there been any study into the impact of the change in the way they operate on those who are affected, that is, those who are involuntarily detained?

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