Fergal Browne (Fine Gael)

I welcome the Minister of State and his official to the House. I am privileged to sit with Senator Glynn and others on the sub-committee investigating the high level of suicide in Irish society. The stories and facts the sub-committee has heard from different groups have opened my eyes to this issue, although we are only half way through our deliberations at this stage. While we have all been touched by suicide and every county has experienced a certain number of suicides per year, the stories told by those directly involved are harrowing. The establishment of the sub-committee is welcome and I look forward to its report, which will be published before Christmas and, I hope, acted upon.

A presentation was made to the sub-committee yesterday. It was fascinating to hear the different reports. We were told that Dr. Schneidman in 1969 stated that for every death through suicide, six people suffer intense grief reactions. A report by Dr. Byrne in 2001 stated that a minimum — I stress the word "minimum"— of 50 people suffer from loss, grief, blame or shame as a result of a single suicide. When we think about suicide, we should not think only of the known cases but of the bigger picture, namely, those affected by the suicide, including those on the outer margins.

Irish society has come a long way. Those who committed suicide in the past were treated shockingly by the State and church. It is terrible that burial in their home graveyards was not allowed but, thankfully, this practice has stopped. We have opened up more in recent times with regard to the issue of suicide but, unfortunately, we have a long way to go. A speaker at yesterday's sub-committee meeting drew a good analogy. If a person had a problem with an eye, he or she would have no difficulty contacting an optician or doctor to get immediate help. However, if that person had a problem one inch above the eye, he or she would tend to close down and hide. That is a difficulty.

I am impressed by the large number of voluntary groups working in the area, such as Console, Living Links, Aware and the Samaritans. However, looking from the outside in, I am aware there is a clear need to co-ordinate their services. All groups that came before the sub-committee spoke about the need for additional funding and stated they are not happy that they cannot give a full national service due to limited resources. I understand this comes under the remit of the National Office for Suicide Prevention which will examine co-ordinating services. It should be one of the key targets of the office.

I was struck by one group explaining how it got telephone calls from individuals expressing concern about another with suicidal thoughts. Often it was the concerned individual who had suicidal thoughts. These individuals tended to speak in the third person instead of admitting openly they themselves had a problem. Thankfully, the groups were able to deal with this and prevent some suicides.

In Europe, it is generally older people who commit suicide. Ireland is unique in that it has a large rate of suicide among young people, particularly among men. The suicide rate among men is four times that of women. However, more women attempt suicide and self-harm. In the past five years, the average rate of suicide stands at 490. It went over 500 in one year. These are the known cases of suicide which means the actual rate could be higher. Several studies have been carried out in other countries on single vehicle crashes which estimate that 10% of them could be suicides. As there is no data on this in Ireland, the Minister of State must set up an investigation into it.

The 25 to 44 year age group, the youngest people in our society, has the highest suicide rate. Last year, there were 5,000 known attempted suicides. However, there are cases where attempted suicides go unreported. For example, an individual who had taken a drug overdose could have woken up the next morning, thankfully surviving it. He or she would have told no one about the attempted suicide. More research needs to be done in this area. While 409 people took their lives last year and 5,000 were involved in self-harm, we still do not have the full picture.

The Minister of State said that €500,000 was given to the National Office for Suicide Prevention, which seems to be a large amount. However, the national road safety campaign costs €22 million and the agency involved in advertising road safety received a budget of €6 million last year. By comparison, it is obvious the National Office for Suicide Prevention is way behind in funding. The message the sub-committee has received from every group is that proper resources need to be put in place. There are delays for treating those with psychological problems. Yesterday, the sub-committee heard of 23-month waiting times for some individuals. There is no infant psychological service and our adolescent services are far from perfect. One can see in the context of the mental health budget that no proper emphasis is being placed on it.

Aware estimates that only 50% of people with depression seek help. This is a worrying figure. Aware also estimates that depression and intoxicant problems present in 90% of suicides. One issue that emerged at the sub-committee hearings was that alcohol consumption and suicide rates have increased in parallel by 40% from 1993 to 2003. While this is a reflection of our growing affluence, as alcohol consumption levels increased, so too, unfortunately, have suicide levels. An alcohol addiction counsellor explained to the sub-committee the connection between binge drinking and suicide. In some cases, suicide is not attempted at the time of binge drinking but two to three days later. Alcohol is a mood-altering drug which not only physically affects one the following day with a hangover but also psychologically for two to three days afterwards.

The Government must put pressure on the advertising industry to stop glamorising drink. People must be educated on the downsides of alcohol consumption as it is causing havoc in people's lives. I am not demanding a puritanical society where alcohol is not available but people must be given the full facts on the effects of alcohol consumption. An onus must be put on the drinks industry to balance its promotional advertising on the positive effects of alcohol and explain its downsides and the risks involved.

I welcome the establishment of the National Office for Suicide Prevention. It has much work ahead of it. It was recommended in the Reach Out strategy for suicide prevention. The office informed the sub-committee that one of its main aims was to increase the number of counselling facilities offered at accident and emergency departments. Approximately 50% of accident and emergency departments have facilities for people who present in cases of self-harm. The office hopes to get this figure to 90%, which must be done without delay. The sub-committee also heard about the need for early intervention. We need better psychological services at infant and adolescent level. Children as young as seven years of age have attempted suicide.

National helplines for suicide prevention are often not available 24 hours a day. As with car crashes, there are certain peak times for suicides. It is fine having helplines available nine to five, but people do not necessarily commit suicide during these hours. Many groups find themselves unable to afford 24 hour helplines. The Government must assist in providing helplines, 24 hours a day, seven days a week.

Stigmatising suicide is a large aspect of the issue. The term "committing" resonates with the idea of committing a crime. It is a phrase that should be taken out of the lexicon. People who commit suicide have an illness. People suffering from depression need to be encouraged to come forward. However, they should not necessarily be treated at psychiatric units but at some alternative.

The statistics are bleak and there is much work to be done in this area. When the Minister of State receives the sub-committee's report in late December, I hope he will increase funding substantially to enable the National Office for Suicide Prevention to co-ordinate services, properly funding the voluntary agencies involved.

Another issue is that of those families left behind who must deal with bereavement through suicide. It is bad enough to lose a loved one through natural causes. Suddenly losing someone through suicide is, however, one event a family can never get over. All Members who have been to funerals sympathising with people in such circumstances will agree it is a horrible experience. Proper resources must be given to those agencies to provide counselling to bereaved families. I hope the Government will take stock of this. It must match the funding for suicide prevention with that for road safety, particularly as more people commit suicide every year than are killed in road accidents.