Tom Morrissey (Progressive Democrats)

I welcome the Minister of State to the House and thank him for his statement on this sad subject. I offer my sympathy to all families of suicide victims. I am sure everybody in the House has had a relative, friend or family friend who has committed suicide.

Research on suicide is as old as the human race, yet it remains inconclusive. We have heard figures for urban, rural and international comparisons, none of which lead us to a conclusive, definitive reason for suicide. Long-term unemployment, which is cited as a reason, has decreased in this country. One imagines that communication skills have increased dramatically with the development of technology in recent years, yet some people feel isolated.

Following a conversation I had recently, I proposed to speak on a matter on the Adjournment. Unfortunately, it was not taken for discussion. I have here the leaflet supplied with Cipramil, one of the drugs given to people suffering from depression or feeling suicidal. I doubt if anybody taking this medicine, or more conventional medicines, reads the accompanying literature. I am curious to whether the Department or the suicide awareness associations have done any research on Cipramil. I have not come across any references to it in the literature I have read. The leaflet accompanying the drug states: