Claire Kerrane (Roscommon-Galway, Sinn Fein) | Oireachtas source

I thank the Minister of State. She still has not answered the question, though. We deserve answers as to why funding was not continued into 2021. Funding was provided in 2020. The Minister of State said work was progressed by the HSE, including initial recruitment in 2020, but by 7 December one consultant had been recruited - just one. There was nothing significant in regard to work progressed at that time. The real question is why funding was allocated in 2020 for the recruitment of staff and was then gone in January 2021. That is the main question. We deserve answers as to why that happened. I appreciate there are posts outstanding and there are issues in regard to recruitment and retention. I acknowledge that. However, there was a long gap from January to July 2021 when there was no funding and the hub was simply sitting there. That is not good enough and I want to know why that happened. I also want to know if funding at the present level will continue annually into the future to ensure we do not see that happen again.

I am particularly concerned about the psychiatry of later life element. Two posts were filled last October. Five posts remain unfilled today and that is of concern. We need to see that element of the hub opened as soon as possible. I ask the Minister of State to look in particular at that psychiatry of later life element. The CAMHS part is important. There are three vacancies there. Given the role the Rosalie Home played in the community of Castlerea, that element of psychiatry of later life for our older people is very important.

Again I ask why funding was dropped or not continued into 2021. Why did it take until July last year for funding to be put in place when we had a state-of-the-art hub where no vacancies were filled and no services were available by the end of 2020? Why then stop the funding into 2021? That is the only question.

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