Mick Barry (Cork North Central, Solidarity) | Oireachtas source

Recently the Children's Rights Alliance gave the Government an E for its performance on youth mental health. I wonder what it would have given the Government for youth mental health services in the Cork and Kerry region? At the end of September, there were 728 young people on the waiting list in our region. This is 16% of the total on the waiting list nationally with just 11% of the population. Because of a recruitment and retention crisis only, one in three of the recommended nursing posts is filled. The wait time for appointments after being referred for depression is four months, more than double the time for any other region. The average wait time for all appointments is 131 days, which is the highest in the country. The numbers who present to an emergency department while still on a waiting list is 13%, more than double the national average.

I support the Bill. The Mental Health Commission should have the power to regulate the CAMHS service under the Mental Health Act. It should have statutory powers to oversee the implementation of its recommendations. This, of course, is only one change that needs to happen. The major change, by far and away not the only one but the major change, is that there must be increased investment to hire more staff and cut waiting times. This is a scandal that has gone on for too long.

See this speech in context