Joan Freeman (Independent) | Oireachtas source

That is why I was so delighted I had the opportunity to run in the presidential election.

I was also proud to have brought the issue of mental health to the fore of the national conversation during this period. This is an issue on which I have worked for decades and one which could not be closer to my heart. I look forward to continuing this work in the House. I will never tire of highlighting this crisis and the lack of adequate services available to tackle it.

There are actions we can take now, however. For example, the Joint Committee on Future of Mental Health Care finished two weeks ago with the publication of its final report on mental health services. It was set up for the purpose of seeking cross-party agreement on a single long-term vision for mental health. The Taoiseach has undertaken to give consideration to making the committee permanent. I ask Members and the public to voice their support for this. A permanent committee will ensure that the budget and services for mental health will not disappear.

In recent years, the mental health budget, as a proportion of the total health budget, has amounted to approximately 6% per year. We allocate half the funds to mental health that other countries, such as Sweden, the Netherlands, Germany, France and the UK, do. We are also far behind in so many other ways.

For example, the UK's mental health budget received an additional boost recently with approximately £2 billion to be allocated to mental health services between now and 2023. The UK is miles ahead of us, not just in terms of budget allocation. It has committed to creating children and young people's crisis teams in every part of the UK through schools and to help pupils with mild and moderate mental health problems. The UK Prime Minister has appointed the first Minister for suicide prevention as part of a £1.8 million push to reduce the number of people taking their own lives. We should consider making a similar appointment. The UK also has investment in community services such as crisis cafes and an expansion of specialised employment support for people with severe mental health illness, along with an announcement of a further £10 million support for veterans with mental health needs.

Ireland must be more ambitious. We are closing hospital wards rather than expanding services. At any given time, we have approximately 50 beds for acutely mentally ill children when more than 2,800 children are on waiting lists needing a timely service. The latest figures show that, at the end of August, 6,340 children were on a waiting list for primary care psychology.

Will the Taoiseach confirm the creation of a permanent mental health care committee in order that we can expand its terms of reference and that the specific recommendations made in the recent report can be finalised?