Garret Ahearn (Fine Gael) | Oireachtas source

I welcome the Minister of State to the Seanad. I congratulate her on the work she has done since she became Minister of State with responsibility for mental health issues. She has taken a lead on an awful lot of projects. It is an extremely difficult time for people but she has an extremely important role at the moment.

On a personal level, I thank her for the commitment she has shown to County Tipperary. I do not think we have ever had a Minister who has come to Tipperary and Clonmel and has taken such an interest and active role in trying to solve issues related to mental health in the region. She is only over the border and always available for a call. I am grateful for that.

As others have said, Covid-19 has many factors that have impacted on life and people in this country.The biggest scar we will have from Covid-19, when we have people vaccinated and when we have control of the disease, will be the long-term mental impact for people. That impact will be felt by everyone, regardless of what age group they are in. I mention young children who cannot go to school and those doing their leaving certificate, who Senator Dooley mentioned and who are suffering uncertainty and stress with that. College students will have lost almost a year and a half of a four-year course. For anyone who has experienced college life; it is probably the best time of their lives but these students are not having that experience. People who are older and feel isolated are not able to meet up with friends and family and that is extremely difficult. As a Government, we need to be prepared for that and we need to be able to ring-fence funding for the impact that will be felt post-Covid-19.

I was speaking to Councillor Richie Molloy who is very involved with carers. Research shows the impact of Covid-19 on young carers, in particular. I know the Minister of State has a role in that as well and that is important too. Beyond 2021 - everyone is hoping we get back to normal in 2022 - the role we have in helping our communities get over the scars of the last year and a half will be hugely important.

We are quite fortunate in Tipperary in the last year or two with the announcement of Jigsaw. I know the Minister of State has been proactive in getting it up and running. Most people within the county accept that because of Covid, things have been delayed in having a building. It is important to stress Jigsaw has an online service which is available to people in Tipperary and across the country. If the Minister of State has any update on that, I would be grateful if she could send it on because it is important and it has been committed to by the Government and by her. I know a building has been sourced, interviews have been carried out and positions have been filled. Everything is ready to go and it is only being held up - like everything else in the country - by Covid. If the Minister of State has any update on that, the people of Tipperary and of Clonmel, where there will be a hub with the main centre in Thurles and a second hub in Nenagh, would be interested in it.

I refer to the Minister of State's other brief outside of mental health. I had a meeting last week with a group in Clonmel, headed by Noel Morrissey, about palliative care. There is a new building which the Minister of State will be aware of as she and the HSE are proactive on it, namely, St. Anthony's unit in Clonmel. It is a new top-class facility that is being built. Could the Minister of State send on some information on that? Where is it at and what is the long-term view? We had a constructive meeting. The Mayor of Clonmel, Siobhán Ambrose, was there as were my colleagues, Michael Murphy and John Fitzgerald. It is something that is needed in the town and in the region of Clonmel and Carrick-on-Suir. If the Minister of State has an update on that, I would be grateful to receive it.