Hildegarde Naughton (Galway West, Fine Gael) | Oireachtas source

I am aware of the annual report of the Mental Health Commission and the use of section 12 of the Mental Health Act by An Garda Síochána. As the Deputy will understand, the proportion of applications for involuntary detention reflects the unfortunate reality that gardaí often encounter persons with severe mental health issues and will be called upon by members of the public, or indeed family members, where a person is experiencing high levels of distress. Very often, members of An Garda Síochána are the first available front-line service to whom people will turn in such situations.

An application for involuntary detention is never made lightly and takes full account of An Garda Síochána‘s obligation to protect the human rights and welfare of individuals and communities. The only statutory option available to gardaí responding to persons in a mental health crisis and who potentially pose a risk of harm to themselves or others is to invoke section 12 of the Mental Health Act 2001. Section 12 requires gardaí to take the person into custody in order to have them assessed by a registered medical practitioner.

Members of An Garda Síochána receive training in mental health issues as part of their recruit training and through continuous professional development training delivered throughout their career. As the Deputy may be aware, the Commission on the Future of Policing in Ireland concluded that societal issues such as the mental health of individuals should not be the responsibility of An Garda Síochána alone, and the commission recommended the establishment of multi-agency teams that would include gardaí to respond to the needs of individuals with mental health issues. A pilot crisis intervention team is being developed in the Limerick Garda division, as the Minister, Deputy Humphreys, mentioned earlier. This pilot is being progressed in close collaboration with the HSE and it is hoped to begin the roll-out of the pilot team early next year.

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