Déirdre de Búrca (Green Party)

I thank the Minister of State, Deputy Moloney, for his open response and the commitments he made to addressing some of the issues raised in the Bill. Many Ministers and Ministers of State come before us but I was very impressed by the extent to which he indicated his willingness to take these issues seriously and make progress in respect of them. I thank him for this and for setting out his priorities for mental health services. He mentioned the removal of stigmatisation, modernising the service and action on suicide. These are three extremely important areas and I will welcome the progress he hopes to make in respect thereof.

On the question of whether this legislation is just a concern of the Green Party, it is obvious from today's debate that the concern over these issues is shared by all parties. I welcome some of the proposals made by members of the other parties, particularly those of Senator Fitzgerald on the need for further debate to allow input by interested parties, including advocacy groups and psychiatric services staff. I welcome the proposal to use the Joint Committee on Health and Children as an important forum to achieve this. However, it is important that this is not used as an excuse to delay or postpone indefinitely action in this area. The proposals will be acceptable to the Green Party as long as they are implemented within an agreed timeframe.

I welcome the proposal to carry out an audit of the regional variations in the use of electroconvulsive therapy. In certain parts of the country, one is four or five times more likely to have electroconvulsive therapy administered than in other parts. As pointed out, we do not have figures on the voluntary and involuntary use of this therapy. This information needs to be collected quickly and with urgency.

I welcome the Minister of State's announcement that amendments are being made to the Mental Health Act and that the Department will be open to accepting amendments pertaining to the issues we raised today.

Our Bill refers to the involuntary use of electroconvulsive therapy. Members have stated we do not understand fully how it works and cannot explain why it works or fails to work. The psychiatric profession cannot predict for whom it will work, nor can it guarantee that its use will not result in harm. The testimony of many who have undergone the procedure would suggest that harm can be quite extensive. We therefore need to take steps to put an end to the involuntary use of the procedure.

While considering involuntary electroconvulsive therapy, will the Minister of State also consider voluntary consent to the procedure? A person who is very unwell and on very heavy psychoactive medication may not be in an ideal position to give informed consent to the use of the procedure. I would like this to be examined.