Mark Ward (Dublin Mid West, Sinn Fein) | Oireachtas source

Sinn Féin will be supporting this Bill because it is technical in nature but I wish to raise some issues regarding the move of the Central Mental Hospital from Dundrum to Portrane. I am aware that one of these issues is not within the remit of the Minister of State, but I need to address it today. A significant land bank will be freed up when the Central Mental Hospital moves from Dundrum. We are and continue to be in a housing crisis and it is important that this land is used to provide public housing. I refer to affordable and social homes for workers and families in order that they can afford to live in Dundrum and surrounding areas.

I have seen reports stating that the Land Development Agency has indicated that only 30% to 40% of the properties in this development site would be for social and affordable housing, with as little as 10% allocated for social housing. If the Land Development Agency factors in the cost of land, then, the chances of these homes being affordable for ordinary workers and their families are slim to none. Public land must be for public homes, social and affordable purchase and affordable rental. This will be a real test to see if the Government is serious about solutions to the housing crisis, solutions which will put workers and families before developers.

I also am concerned that the increase in the capacity in the new Central Mental Hospital will not be enough. In Portrane, the Central Mental Hospital will form one element of a broader national forensic mental health service campus, as the Minister of State noted. It will, however, only have 26% more beds than at present. I have a different figure regarding the present spaces available from that given by the Minister of State. My figure is 103 beds, which I got from the Bill Digest of the Oireachtas Library and Research Service, while the Minister of State referred to 93. The current number, however, will expand to 130 beds. The Minister of State will know that the nature of these beds means they do not become vacant as they would in a standard hospital. These 130 beds could become full very quickly with patients who could be in the hospital for a long time. We need an urgent plan to increase the capacity and staffing levels in the hospital.

The relocation of the Central Mental Hospital will free up spaces in our prisons, which are not the place for the mentally unwell.

The bail system also needs to looked at because mentally unwell people are being released into society without treatment. They are often a danger to themselves and to others. Currently, one third of the people entering our prison system have mental health issues and others develop such issues while incarcerated. Many prisoners released early from prison often have worse mental health problems than they had on entering. As I said, prisons are not places for the mentally unwell. The Minister needs to develop a mental health plan for all prisoners.

A recent report on Irish prisons by the European Committee on the Prevention of Torture described conditions, including a mentally unwell man lying naked in his own faeces and urine in a cell. On every level, this is wrong. I spoke to several people who work within the Irish Prison Service who said that they do their utmost for prisoners. I have no doubt that they do but prisons are not equipped to house the mentally unwell.

Earlier this year, the documentary "The Guards: Inside the K" highlighted the Garda dealing with mental health. Gardaí featured in the programme called on the Government to put more resources into mental health services for those who may not have access to them. Chief Superintendent Finbarr Murphy said that many people who end up prison have mental health issues and be believed there is a need for more support around those people, not from a criminal justice perspective, but a health perspective. I have spoken to gardaí in my area and they have said the same. People are who are mentally unwell and in distress can act outside the norms of society and come to the attention of the Garda. We need to put in place a more humane procedure than that available under the current judicial system. The imprisonment of people in cells who need wraparound supports is a failure. I have stated many times that we need 24-7 emergency access to mental health supports. This would take pressure off the Garda and society and it would help people in need of supports.

Provision is made in the new Central Mental Hospital for ten beds specifically for children and young people. This will be known as the forensic child and adolescent mental health unit. We must ensure that these beds remain separate from the main facility. I have previously raised the draconian practice in this country of children being admitted to adult psychiatric units, in respect of which there were 54 in 2019. We must ensure that this practice ceases immediately.

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