Mary Butler (Waterford, Fianna Fail)

I am pleased to be here in the Seanad to discuss the very important topic of mental health and suicide prevention. This month is mental health awareness month, and today is “Hello, how are you?” day, when we mark the annual campaign led by Mental Health Ireland which encourages meaningful conversations and reminds us of the power of this simple question. The message of the campaign is that talking about mental health can be difficult but starting that conversation does not have to be. This is my first time speaking on Seanad statements since I was reappointed as Minister of State with responsibility for mental health. It has been an honour and privilege to be the first person to bring the mental health portfolio to the Cabinet table. This is a real milestone for mental health in Ireland and shows the importance it has for the Government.

Our statements today are about mental health and suicide prevention. As a society there is a huge amount for us to reflect on when it comes to the issue of suicide. Each death is so devastating for that person, their loved ones, friends and communities. As I have said before, there is no greater tragedy than someone deciding that life is not worth living. As Minister of State, I never lose sight of this and it is a critical area of focus for me. All of us in the Government are committed to improving mental health services and reducing suicide.

Just last week I brought a memo to Cabinet, to update Government on key developments in suicide reduction, and to note the significant reduction in the suicide rate and the reduction and stabilisation of the self-harm rate. In recent years there have been several positive developments in reducing suicide and self-harm rates in Ireland. Between the years 2000 and 2021, Ireland has seen a 28% reduction in the suicide rate. This has resulted in Ireland having the 11th lowest suicide rate in the EU for all deaths, according to Eurostat data. Government also noted that preliminary data for 2023, showing 302 deaths, was the lowest preliminary figure in more than 20 years. Of course, this is provisional data and it will be revised upwards, but we are making progress.

Recently published data from the National Suicide Research Foundation self-harm registry also highlights that, between 2010 and 2023, self-harm rates decreased by 12%. This is another positive development, as previous self-harm remains the biggest risk factor for suicide.

When we talk about suicide reduction, we never want to focus too much on figures. We are always conscious of the people we have lost and how much more we need to do. The developments in reducing the incidence of self-harm and suicide have been primarily realised through work aligned with the goals of Connecting for Life, our national suicide reduction strategy. There has been sustained investment in suicide reduction initiatives, and the budget and expenditure of the HSE’s National Office for Suicide Prevention has increased from €5 million in 2012 to almost €15 million in 2025.

Suicide remains a critical public health issue, particularly among men. Men account for almost 80% of suicide deaths. I am acutely aware of this and budget 2025 allocated €2 million to enhance the provision of counselling supports for men. Two thirds of counselling services in Ireland are accessed by females. It is really important we support younger, middle-aged and older men to reach out and ask for that help.

My Department is working to develop a successor suicide reduction policy for Ireland. A public consultation is in progress with 1,895 submissions to date, where many people have been generously sharing their stories, their lived experience and their living experience. I look forward to bringing the new policy to Government for approval later this year.

The reform of Ireland's mental health services is guided by Sharing the Vision: A Mental Health Policy for Everyone. Sharing the Vision is a far-ranging and comprehensive policy, with the vision of creating a mental health system that addresses the needs of the population through a focus on the requirements of the individual. To do this, the policy contains 100 recommendations for the ongoing enhancement of our mental health services as well as recommendations for promoting positive mental health and developing upstream prevention and early intervention supports, in line with international best practice. The policy is action-oriented and focused on better outcomes for people experiencing mental health difficulties to bring about tangible changes in their lives and achieve better results, with the voice and expertise of people with lived and living experience embedded throughout.

Since I launched the policy in 2020, we have seen significant progress in the improvement, enhancement and reform of our mental health services, in particular across the roll-out of our national clinical programmes. I have prioritised the national clinical programme on eating disorders since my first appointment as Minister of State in 2020. The reality is that there was very little support available for people with eating disorders prior to the now-annual investment of more than €9 million in the clinical programme. The most effective treatment setting for eating disorders is in the community and we now have 14 of the 16 teams envisaged by the model of care funded. Most teams are fully operational with almost 100 dedicated clinicians seeing people every day. Other teams are at different stages of recruitment and preparation for being operational.

Prior to the inception of the national clinical programme for adults with ADHD, which I launched as Minister of State in 2021, there were no specific ADHD public services available for adults in Ireland. The new clinical programme for adults with ADHD is now being implemented across the country by multidisciplinary teams on a phased basis, with seven teams already operational. In budget 2025, I secured the funding to complete the roll-out of the programme and bring ADHD teams to all areas of the country.

In addition to the progress made in our national clinical programmes, I recently announced a significant €31 million capital investment for mental health in 2025. This is the largest ever one-year allocation for mental health infrastructure and forms part of the Government’s broader commitment to delivering modern, fit-for-purpose, person-centred mental health facilities. We have made a lot of progress, but there is much more to do. I was delighted to be reappointed as Minister of State to be able to keep delivering the much-needed changes and improvements required.

Mental health is everybody's business. It is a whole-of-population and whole-of-government issue. There is no health without mental health. I look forward to being back in the Seanad very soon with the new Mental Health Bill which passed Second Stage in the Dáil in September. I will be looking for Government approval in the next two weeks for 153 amendments to the Bill. I will be bringing it to Committee Stage and then look forward to bringing it to the Seanad where I hope I will get full support for it.