Kathleen Lynch (Cork North Central, Labour) | Oireachtas source

I have four and a half years of experience with the Mental Health Commission and they are probably the most independent group of people I have ever come across. It is financed and resourced by Government but has no problem telling it exactly what is wrong, where something is wrong and what it should do to put it right. In the first instance the director will have to report to the Mental Health Commission and the commission will have to report to the Minister for Health. The Minister for Justice and Equality, whoever that may be, will also have an input because the legislation comes under justice and equality. The director, however, will be the person responsible for implementation and oversight. The people he or she employs or chooses to engage with will be responsible as decision makers, co-decision makers and assistant makers, as will the person who makes the appointment and the people who make the complaint. If the director suspects there is something to be investigated they will carry out an investigation, even if no complaint is made.

We have to find a home for this because we do not have the resources, or the agreement from Government, to provide a stand-alone agency. This group sits before me regularly and tells me what they think is wrong and what is not wrong, unlike other groups who might not feel they can do so because of where their resources come from. They take their responsibility very seriously. They are there to protect a vulnerable group of people and, in respect of capacity, that is what we are talking about. Yes, it should be an independent agency. That would be great but we cannot provide that. In the future, another Government may make a different decision, but I have to make the call on it now.