Martin Conway (Fine Gael) | Oireachtas source

I welcome the Minister of State to the House. She is becoming a frequent and regulator visitor, and it is always great to have her here. I see this Bill as a positive development. The facility in Dundrum is clearly not fit for purpose. What we are facilitating through what is a largely technical Bill, but yet a very important statement, is transferring the Central Mental Hospital into the national forensic mental health campus, which one hopes is a centre of excellence, where people will receive the type of supports they need.For too long, we have heard about the negatives in the health services in this country, although more recently, there has been a more balanced discourse in that regard. This development has been happening quietly in recent years, with the support of all parties, to do the right thing by people who suffer from mental challenges. I fully agree with Senator McDowell that it probably is not big enough and that it probably does not provide enough supports, but it is certainly a great start. It has been going on for a long time. Certainly, quarter 1 of 2021 will be a giant leap forward in how we view people who find themselves in these circumstances, which would be welcomed by everybody.

I listened with great interest to Senator McDowell when he was a Minister in regard to the issue of padded cells. I had not realised that he was the Minister for Justice, Equality and Law Reform who ordered that their use should cease and who got the support of the Government at the time. That was significant and it was always going to influence his opinions and how he would move forward in this area. That is good, because personal experience and seeing something like that at first hand would, of course, have an impact on how he would chart his commitment to that going forward.

I served on the Joint Committee on Justice and Equality with Senator Bacik for a number of years. We went to see many facilities, including Mountjoy Prison, Cork Prison and others. This House has highlighted issues in this area and we have seen some incremental success. The mental capacity legislation that was before the Oireachtas between 2011 and 2016, ground-breaking as it was at the time, was intended to do exactly what the Minister of State spoke about, that is, to address the language used. Language is important. The old phrase "sticks and stones may break our bones but names will never hurt us" is not true, of course.

As for the language in the various items of legislation, which go back to the 1800s, I do not know whether we can create some omnibus legislation to change the language. Even if we just change the language, it would be appropriate. The Minister of State had no choice but to read those terms into the record of the House because that is the legislative framework she is working from. We should strive to change it. Hopefully, there will now be a period of government for the next three or four years, where matters such as this can be addressed. It could not have been done by the previous Government because there was a question as to how long it would last. All that was ever dealt with was legislation that was deemed a priority, with the exception of the Judicial Appointments Commission Bill 2017, but we will not go there. The language needs to be tidied up and it would be appropriate to do so.

What is the intention for the building in Dundrum? What use does the HSE plan to make of the building? I have never visited it but I believe it is a highly valuable site. Are there plans to dispose of it on the open market or will other uses be made of it from a health or justice perspective? Overall, the Bill is a good development. I am a member of the Joint Sub-Committee on Mental Health. A visit to the new forensic mental health campus would be in order, just to see at first hand exactly what is being done and what the plans are for caring for vulnerable people in our society.Senator McDowell gave an example of a visit to a facility to get an understanding of it when he spoke about his trip to a prison, where he saw a padded cell. I wish the Minister of State the very best in passing this legislation. It is technical in nature but what it will achieve is very important as a statement about our society.