Pat Buckley (Cork East, Sinn Fein) | Oireachtas source

I thank the Minister of State, Deputy Rabbitte, for being here. I welcome the opportunity to raise this issue.

I will provide a brief background. It was the wording in the previous Mental Health Commission report in 2018 that got me. It said the Owenacurra centre "was" a 24-bed unit situated in the middle of the town. It "was" a single-storey prefab building centred around an internal courtyard. There were 16 single bedrooms and four twin bedrooms. We learned as recently as last Monday that the centre would be closed on the basis of a number of reports. I thank the Minister of State for letting me know that it was coming, but it was still a shock.

The centre had 19 long-term residents, but it also has a day-care centre, long-stay facilities and respite care. It served a lot of the east Cork area as people travelled from Youghal, Cobh and other places to use the centre. I spoke to a number of staff in the centre. We know the patients are the priority at the moment and getting suitable accommodation or services for them.

The location of the centre in Midleton is a very valuable site and having spoken to people they are fearful about what will happen given that the building has been condemned as not being fit for purpose. In this day and age, it is strange to have prefab units. I know from previous reports of the Mental Health Commission that the same phrases came up all the time: "not fit for purpose" and "falling apart", and there were references to ceilings coming down. I got so angry when I heard they were just going to shut it between now and the end of October, which is very soon. Why did the HSE not put resources into the building to maintain it in the way people maintain their house or garden?

We in Midleton and in east Cork do not want this centre to be a big white elephant after October and then listen to bickering from all sides saying it is a valuable site and we do not know what we are going to do with it. We need all those services in Midleton. We need them in that centre on that site. The staff there want some kind of commitment from either the Minister or the HSE, preferably both, that we will not have a derelict building in October, which will draw anti-social behaviour and in the worst-case scenario end up going on fire. What we need is a commitment that something will be replaced on the site to guarantee the same or even better services than we had before.

Most of the staff there seem happy enough to be redeployed and there is good engagement with them. I always give credit where it is due, but I do not trust the HSE. It stated that a plan for the future of the site would be considered in due course. Basically, it does not have a plan for the site yet and that makes me fearful. We should have something similar back on the site as soon as possible because it is a necessity. The Minister of State is aware of the situation given her current and recent portfolios that people are not getting any younger. Mental health issues are increasing, and they will probably increase further. I seek a commitment that a fit-for-purpose building will be put back on the site that can benefit east Cork.

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