Ivana Bacik (Independent)
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The Order of Business is No. 1, Social Welfare and Pensions Bill 2014 - Second Stage, to be taken at 11.45 a.m. with the contributions of group spokespersons not to exceed eight minutes and all other Senators not to exceed five minutes.

Darragh O'Brien (Fianna Fail)
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Following on from a number of contributions I and other colleagues, including Senator Gilroy, made this week and over the past 12 to 24 months on the state of adult mental health services, Senators will know that the 2013 annual report on mental health, disability and special needs was published earlier this week and it directly contradicts what the Minister of State, Deputy Kathleen Lynch, has been saying in the Seanad and in the Dáil. It is a very damning report and shows that the majority of the facilities are understaffed. Only 60% of facilities meet guidelines for individual patient care. This has been consistently raised in the House, so it should not come as a surprise to the Minister of State. I have raised specific issues with her on the Adjournment, including Curam in north County Dublin, as have other Senators.

However, the Minister of State continues to simply hide behind reports and all she does when she comes into the House is give a good account of herself in so far as saying she has a personal commitment but any of the advances made under A Vision for Change in this area are being eroded daily by her inaction and incompetence in this area. Due to the economic difficulties and so on over the past five or six years, mental health and the health of our nation are crucially important but they are not getting the support they require.

Nine consultant psychiatrists wrote to the Minister of State 14 months ago but they did not even get a response from her. Why has she not even responded to experts in this area who wrote to her formally, as their line Minister, 14 months ago? Since she has not bothered to respond to them, they have withdrawn their support from the clinical management system. I know from talking to consultant psychiatrists in the areas with which I am familiar in Dublin that they have been pushed to the pin of their collar. They cannot operate, there is no management structure, there is little or no interaction with the HSE and there is zero interaction with the line Minister. This situation cannot be allowed to continue.

I would like the Minister of State to come to the House to tell us the truth as to what she is doing once and for all. She has done nothing and has made the situation worse. She will come into the House and tell us she is personally committed to this. She will be sympathetic and empathetic. That is absolutely great but it does not resolve the situation. I would like her to come into the House to tell me five things she has actually done and the number of visits she has carried out in the past three years since she took over this portfolio.

To assist her in this regard, I propose an amendment to the Order of Business that the Minister of State, Deputy Kathleen Lynch, come to the House today to make a statement on the current situation in regard to mental health services and respond to the claims made and the facts laid down in the annual report of 2013, which show that most of the facilities in the country are understaffed and the majority do not meet individual patient care guidelines set down by her Department.

Paul Coghlan (Fine Gael)
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I very much welcome the package agreed by Cabinet this week for the Magdalen women, which is overdue. I wish the Taoiseach and the Minister of State, Deputy Donohoe, the very best at the EU summit in Ypres, the ceremony at the Menin Gate to mark 100 years since the start of the First World War and perhaps more important, in agreeing a strategic agenda to guide the EU for the next five-year term and in nominating the next European Union Commissioner.

Feargal Quinn (Independent)
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The words of the Irish Kidney Association bring to mind the problem of kidney transplants and the real difficulty we have south of the Border. Apparently, north of the Border, Belfast City Hospital has solved this problem and could help us out. To what extent, are we availing of this opportunity to ensure kidney transplants take place? There is a long waiting list in the South but apparently they have solved this problem in the North. A transplant from a living donor - in other words, one of the family or somebody who gives one a kidney rather than from someone who is deceased - has a much better chance of surviving. It seems we are ignoring an opportunity to link up with Belfast City Hospital to solve that problem.

A tax credit for home help was introduced in Sweden and Finland. Sweden introduced tax credits for household help and specifically to encourage more people to return to work. I suppose it is to do basic jobs such as cooking, gardening and looking after the household. It has almost wiped out the black economy in that area. I do not know what the situation is in Ireland but Sweden has solved this problem very easily.

I do not what is the position here but Sweden appears to have solved the problem easily. In addition, Finland has created 90,000 jobs and while these are not full-time positions, they are suitable for many people and are frequently taken by mothers returning to employment after childbirth. We should learn something from these examples. Finland, with a population of similar size to Ireland's population, has created 92,000 jobs at no direct cost through the introduction of a tax credit, rather than a direct financial outlay. It would be worthwhile investigating this issue.

John Kelly (Labour)
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In the two years since I started raising issues related to medical cards no one listened to me. We have seen the results. I propose to raise another issue related to how the primary care reimbursement service, PCRS, operates. I hope I will be listened to on this occasion and action will be taken to address the issue I raise. The PCRS is not a user-friendly system. When it receives an application for a medical card it sends the applicant a generic letter - the organisation acknowledges this is the case - in which it requests further details of income, albeit without specifying what information it seeks. When the applicant submits the information he or she believes the PCRS is seeking an acknowledgement is not issued to the applicant as the service will only provide an acknowledgement to a public representative. If the information is deemed to be insufficient or unsatisfactory, the application will be parked and left until such time as the PCRS decides the applicant is not entitled to a medical card on the basis that a certain time has elapsed.

I am dealing with a case involving a trainee solicitor, a mature student aged 25 years, who does not have any income. When I asked him yesterday how he is surviving in Dublin he informed me that the Society of St. Vincent de Paul is helping him while he completes his course. He has been refused a medical cared by the primary care reimbursement service because he does not have an income. I spoke to an official yesterday who argued that a person with no income is not entitled to a medical card. There is something utterly wrong with the way in which the system operates. I ask the Leader to invite the Minister for Health or relevant Minister of State to the House to discuss this matter.

As I indicated, this issue is as important as the withdrawal of medical cards from sick people, yet it is not being addressed. When one speaks to officials in the PCRS one is told to accept the position and get on with it. The young man to whom I referred has been trying to obtain the medical card to which he is entitled for five months, during which time the PCRS is saving money. This is a major problem which must be resolved.

Mark Daly (Fianna Fail)
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I second the amendment to the Order of Business proposed by Senator Darragh O'Brien.
I pay tribute to Gerry Conlon who passed away this week. His speech on his release from prison is one of the iconic television moments of the 20th century. He summoned great dignity and passion following his release after 15 years spent wrongfully imprisoned and having seen his father die in prison. An article in today's edition of The Irish Timesmakes the most curious point that if the Guildford Four had been relying on the Irish media to make their case, they would still be in prison. Only a small number of journalists championed their cause. This lack of support and the lack of clarity about what the Guildford Four faced continues in the reporting of the death of Gerry Conlon. RTE, for example, referred to Mr. Conlon's wrongful imprisonment after a miscarriage of justice and made no reference to the Guildford Four being tortured or the hiding of evidence from their defence team.
Miscarriages of justice against Irish citizens and the State continue. What are the Taoiseach and Tánaiste doing in response to a recent excellent RTE documentary which exposed events surrounding a case Ireland took against the British state for torturing a number of Irish citizens living in the North, who became known as the "hooded men"? I have not heard the Taoiseach, Tánaiste or any other member of the Government express outrage about the way in which the British Government lied to the State or about recent revelations that the British Prime Minister was aware at the time that elements in the British army were shooting Irish citizens in Belfast. Not one question has been raised about these matters.
Senator Paul Coghlan praised the Taoiseach, his party leader, for travelling to France this week to discuss the future of Europe. Perhaps he will ask the Taoiseach whether he raised with the British Prime Minister, David Cameron, the files that were hidden from the State when it prosecuted the British State.

Paul Coghlan (Fine Gael)
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Everything proper was done through the appropriate channels.

Paddy Burke (Fine Gael)
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Please allow Senator Daly to continue without interruption.

Paul Coghlan (Fine Gael)
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Senator Daly is waffling.

Mark Daly (Fianna Fail)
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Was it also intended to secure the release of the Birmingham Six and Guildford Four through the appropriate channels?

Paddy Burke (Fine Gael)
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Does the Senator have a question for the Leader?

Mark Daly (Fianna Fail)
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I ask the Leader to arrange a debate on issues related to the British state's practice of hiding files, not only in respect of the cases of the Birmingham Six, Guildford Four and hooded men, but also in the case of the Dublin and Monaghan bombings. Britain, a friendly nation, has refused-----

Paul Coghlan (Fine Gael)
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The Senator does not have a monopoly of wisdom on any of those issues.

Mark Daly (Fianna Fail)
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The facts are clear in all these cases.

Paul Coghlan (Fine Gael)
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The Senator likes to mix up his facts.

Mark Daly (Fianna Fail)
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The facts are that the British Government is refusing to release to the Irish State files relating to the Dublin and Monaghan bombings in which Irish citizens were murdered in this city.

I ask the Leader to arrange a debate on a letter sent to 64 national organisations in the community sector in which they were told to place their staff on protective notice. The organisations in question include the Irish Deaf Society and other groups which protect the most vulnerable. The letter was issued because the Minister for the Environment, Community and Local Government, Deputy Phil Hogan, was unable to make a decision on funding in May or June. It is not acceptable that organisations which protect the most vulnerable should be told to place their staff on protective notice because the Department cannot make a decision.

Michael Comiskey (Fine Gael)
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I welcome the news that the Minister for Agriculture, Food and the Marine, Deputy Simon Coveney, will open a $12 million cheese plant in the United States. This is very good news for the Irish agriculture sector. The dairy industry, which is experiencing significant growth, will achieve even higher growth from next year onwards, resulting in more jobs in the agriculture sector and an increase in exports to the United States of up to 40%. This is a significant development for the agriculture industry.

Sean Barrett (Independent)
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I propose to raise two items on the cost of living. The Commission for Energy Regulation has reported that 20% of households cannot afford to pay their electricity bills. It is strange that this statement was made by the commission given that it continues to promote high-cost forms of electricity such as wind, biomass and turf and opposed the Ballylongford project which could have brought low-price gas into the country. The Green Paper on energy does not adequately address this issue or our consumer unfriendly energy policy. I ask the Leader to arrange a debate on the Green Paper.

The jump of 22% in Dublin house prices in 12 months is great news for the property sector and banks and so forth but horrendous news for first-time buyers whose incomes are in decline in real terms. The Government, against the advice of this side of the House, gave tax breaks to real estate investment trusts. We warned when this was done previously that tax breaks, when applied for too long, precipitate a boom. They have caused house prices to increase by 22% in one year. I note the Leader informed the House on Tuesday that the National Asset Management Agency has offered 5,237 units to local authorities, which will have accepted only slightly more than 1,000 or 20% of these by the end of the year. We must have a co-ordinated housing policy that is not based on banks and will not result in another generation being placed in debt as they seek to pay 22% more for a house than was paid last year. When a market is rising at a rate of 22% per annum, we must urgently address the appropriateness of any type of fiscal privilege for the property sector.

John Gilroy (Labour)
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It is with some regret that I find myself in agreement with what Senator Darragh O'Brien said about the mental health services in this country. I worked as a psychiatric nurse for 28 years, up to 2011, and what I hear from former - and future - colleagues makes for very dispiriting listening. I refer to the report Senator O'Brien mentioned by the Mental Health Commission and the Inspector of Mental Hospitals. I am very depressed about it because most of what the report tells us is about the physical condition of the facilities and the structure of the services. It tells us very little, however, about the quality of care that is provided in the services. That is a real weakness in the reporting system. I called in recent days on the Leader to organise a comprehensive debate on mental health services and policy in this country and he has graciously agreed to do that. It is an important matter that we must discuss deeply. I asked that a debate would take place in September, which seems a long time away, on the basis that it would give us time to prepare and arm ourselves with the facts. It is with regret that I agree with almost everything Senator O'Brien said.

David Cullinane (Sinn Fein)
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I take the opportunity this morning to welcome the announcement by the vice president of Bausch & Lomb, who is in the Visitors Gallery, of a capital investment in its plant in Waterford. A number of weeks ago, workers were presented with a fait accompliof 200 redundancies and pay cuts of up to 20%. Since then there have been intensive negotiations between the two trade unions involved, the workers themselves and the management of the company, with the support of all the Oireachtas Members who worked constructively together on the issue. Others were involved such as the Department and the Minister, and they played a constructive role as well. The problem is that we are still faced with 200 redundancies and the workers have sacrificed a large portion of their pay - up to 15% - to keep the plant open. We should commend their courage and bravery in accepting that outcome and thereby helping to protect the 900 jobs that will remain. The new capital investment is a vote of confidence in the future of the plant.
I have called several times for a debate on regional development and do so again today. We still have very high levels of unemployment across the State generally, with particularly high levels in certain regions. The south east is one of those areas. We must have a suite of Government interventions across a range of Departments to help the south-east region to grow its economy, create jobs and attract more investment and industry. The Government must implement the recommendations contained in the several reports that have been published, including the report published by me on behalf of the Oireachtas Joint Committee on Jobs, Enterprise and Innovation. We must be told how the Forfás report commissioned by the Minister on the national jobs action strategy is impacting on regional development. Are all of the various proposals and promises that were made being delivered? How can we help regions which are clearly underperforming and require greater investment and a coherent Government strategy? I thank the Leader for his role in resolving the difficult situation at Bausch & Lomb in recent weeks and ask that he facilitate the debate for which I am again calling.

Martin Conway (Fine Gael)
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I agree with previous speakers on the need for a much more active engagement on the issue of mental health. As a society, we need to wake up to our deficiencies in dealing with this issue. It is a scandal that is happening in our lifetime and under our watch. We are more than three years in government now and we must grasp the nettle on this issue. People are expecting us and depending on us to do so. What is happening in the area of mental health is wrong. Many people, both on a voluntary and professional basis, are doing remarkable work in the area, but we need a much more focused intervention at Government level. It is not acceptable that people working in the mental health sector have lost confidence in the system. That confidence must be restored.

Will the Leader consider holding a public consultation on the issue of mental health? We have professionals in this House who can contribute positively to such a process. For example, Senator John Gilroy, on his own time and expense, has gone around the country holding public consultations on mental health. He and other Members have a great deal to offer a consultation process that would facilitate an engagement with those working in the sector. It should be a short and snappy process and produce a quick result.

To conclude on a positive note, I wish all the best to Gavin Glynn, the brave four year old from Greystones who is receiving lifesaving cancer treatment in Houston, Texas. I commend everybody who helped his parents to reach their fund-raising target of €350,000 to pay for Gavin's treatment. That achievement reflects the remarkable generosity of the Irish people, whose hearts and wallets responded so commendably to this brave human interest story. I wish Gavin and his parents all the very best in what will be a long but, we hope, successful route to good health.

Paul Coghlan (Fine Gael)
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Hear, hear.

Susan O'Keeffe (Labour)
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I had the pleasure of attending the launch of the Leitrim Recreation Strategy last Monday in Carrick-on-Shannon. This initiative is a fine example of collaboration by a large number of people to promote existing recreational facilities in the county and develop news ones, with a focus on waterways and land use, equestrian and walking in particular. Will the Leader facilitate a debate on the issue of rights of way? It is clear, for the sake of the health of the nation, that we must encourage citizens to walk more, which requires that there are places in which it is safe and pleasant to walk, both rurally and in urban areas. This is an area of significant potential growth for tourism.

The Leitrim Recreation Strategy initiative is just one example of people coming together throughout the country seeking to develop their area's recreational and tourism potential. Some of them will end up doing battle; in other cases, there will be a good outcome from encouraging landowners and farmers to accommodate walkers. The broad issues have been discussed before in this House, but I am calling for a debate which concentrates specifically on rights of way. Perhaps it is more suitable for a public consultation. What is important is that organisations like the forum in Leitrim can see we are giving serious attention to the issue that will make or break all such initiatives. We can all talk about the enormous potential for tourism and for our health in these types of initiatives, but it will remain a dream until such time as we find a resolution to the rights of way issue.

Michael Mullins (Fine Gael)
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I support my colleague, Senator Martin Conway, in his call for a public consultation on mental health. There is hardly a family in the country that has not been impacted in some way by this issue and which has had need of one or other service. It is time we reviewed A Vision for Change to see whether it needs to be tweaked and made fit for purpose in today's setting. We have all had difficulties in our own constituencies regarding the closure of residential beds and how the service is configured.

An open and frank debate in this House with people working at the coalface would do the State some service and I would welcome it.

I welcome that the Public Health (Sunbeds) Act has been signed into law and will take effect from next month. I take the opportunity to appeal to all people, especially young people, to take serious account of the dangers to their health from overexposure to sunlight or tanning radiation. As we all know, skin cancer is the fastest-growing cancer in Ireland with 10,000 new cases reported annually. Irish people are risking their lives by disregarding the risks involved. It is often a case of peer pressure and it ultimately contributes to serious injury or even death. From next month there will be an onus on operators of sunbeds to ensure those under 18 years of age are not provided with a sun-tanning service. This new regulation will be enforced by HSE environmental health officers. We need to make people aware of the serious dangers to their health involved in using sunbeds. Young people in particular should be aware of the serious consequences. We need to make the owners of sunbed premises aware that this legislation will come into place next month.

Ivana Bacik (Independent)
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I will first respond to Senator Darragh O'Brien who raised the issue of adult mental health services and the publication of the inspector's annual report for 2013. I raised the issue on the Order of Business on Tuesday and Senator Gilroy has also raised it again today. We all asked for a debate and I support the Senator's call for a debate. I cannot accept the amendment to have the Minister of State, Deputy Kathleen Lynch, come to the House today, but I will certainly speak to the Leader about arranging a debate in early course. It is a good idea in general to ask Ministers to update us on five things they have done in their portfolio. That is quite a nice way of framing a debate for any Minister just over half way through the term of government.

Darragh O'Brien (Fianna Fail)
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It might pose some of them difficulties; we might put it down to one.

John Gilroy (Labour)
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All of them perhaps.

Ivana Bacik (Independent)
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I take issue with some of the words Senator Darragh O'Brien used. He used words such as incompetence in respect of the Minister of State, Deputy Kathleen Lynch, which is most unfair. The Minister of State, Deputy Kathleen Lynch, has been one of the most reactive and proactive Ministers. She has secured ring fencing for funding for mental health services.

Darragh O'Brien (Fianna Fail)
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She has not.

Ivana Bacik (Independent)
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Let us not forget that she is implementing a policy that has cross-party support - a previous Government's policy in A Vision for Change, which is a policy to close the big residential facilities and move to smaller facilities. The report, as I said this week, exposes inconsistencies in standards and certainly it is cause for concern and it would be good to have a debate on it. However, this is part of an overall policy that everyone has signed up to - stakeholders in the mental health services and all parties. I agree to look for that debate but I cannot accept the amendment to ask the Minister of State to come in today.

Senator Paul Coghlan welcomed the package agreed at Cabinet on Tuesday for survivors of Magdalen institutions. I agree with him that it is very welcome to see that overdue series of measures being approved at Cabinet. I know many people in this House have been looking for that over the past year or more. The former Senator, Dr. Martin McAleese, was very instrumental in ensuring that a package of measures would be put together on the conclusion of his report. The Senator also wished the Taoiseach and the Irish delegation in Ypres well, to mark the 100 years since the start of the First World War. It is very important that Ireland is represented there and that we mark these important centenaries. It is also, of course, a summit that is of importance in deciding the future agenda for the EU and deciding on the President of the EU Commission. Certainly, we all wish them well on that.

Senator Quinn raised the serious issue of waiting lists for kidney transplants. He also raised a very interesting point about a policy in Sweden and Finland of tax credits for home helps, which as he pointed out has wiped out the black economy there on that issue and created up to 90,000 part-time jobs. It would be an excellent idea for a Private Members' debate in this House because it seems like the sort of innovative policy we could consider implementing here in Ireland.

Senator Kelly spoke about medical cards and the non-user-friendly procedures before the PRCS. He raised the particular case of a student with no income. I think that particular case might be the subject of a matter on the Adjournment. I am certainly happy to ask the Leader to invite the Minister for Health to come in to deal with the broader issues. The Minister for Health will be here next week on a number of health-related Bills and there may be an opportunity to raise some of those issues with him then.

Senator Daly paid tribute to the late Gerry Conlon. I spoke on this, as did many colleagues, on Tuesday in this House, expressing sympathy to his family and paying tribute to him. I had the privilege of meeting him many years ago and I am a huge admirer of his work on miscarriages of justice. I would absolutely agree with the words Senator Daly used about Gerry Conlon. The Senator also made some comments relating to the past and the British Government's treatment of Irish citizens and so forth. It would be good to have a debate in this House on the progress of the peace process because the issue of how we deal with the past in terms of the conflict in Northern Ireland has been a huge issue for the Richard Haass negotiations and it is a big issue before the Joint Committee on the Implementation of the Good Friday Agreement. It would be good to have a debate in this House particularly on the issue of how we deal with the past and address injustices from the past. The Senator also spoke about a letter from the Minister for the Environment, Community and Local Government, which might be a suitable matter on the Adjournment.

Senator Comiskey welcomed the opening today by the Minister, Deputy Coveney, of an $80 million cheese manufacturing facility for the Irish Dairy Board in Wisconsin. I join the Senator in welcoming this very important facility. A $12 million research and development facility completes the final phase of the $80 million expansion programme. The facility is part of an Irish Dairy Board business, manufacturing cheese and other value-added cheese-based ingredients. The point of this initiative is that through it the Irish dairy Board will help to build a reputation for the Irish dairy sector in the US, which is a new and growing market for us, particularly when dairy production in Ireland is on the cusp of dramatic expansion following the abolition of quotas. We all very much welcome that development and hope it will lead to further expansion of the sector in Ireland.

Senator Barrett raised the very serious issue of energy bills. I saw the reports today that 20% of households are in difficulty with their energy bills. The Senator called for a debate on the Green Paper on energy, which would be a good debate to have in the House. I will ask the Leader to make progress on that. The Senator also spoke about the reported increase in house prices in the Dublin area, particularly the stark increase in the past 12 months of 22%. This has positive and negative aspects to it. Clearly, it is a very serious problem, not just for first-time buyers. I have also received representations from people who were seeking to move from their first home, perhaps a small apartment, and who now have one, two or more children. They are living in very cramped and unsuitable conditions, but simply cannot get the necessary mortgage to move up to the next stage. Clearly, there is a real difficulty with a lack of affordable family homes in the Dublin area. While I know it is a very specific problem, it would be good to have a debate on housing policy more generally and the sorts of measures we can introduce to assist first-time buyers and people who are looking to trade up and buy houses more generally in the market.

Senator Gilroy called for a debate on mental health services, a topic he has raised on many occasions. I know the Leader has agreed to that already. September is not that far off and that would be appropriate timing for that debate.

Senator Cullinane welcomed the announcement by Bausch and Lomb that it will invest in an upgrade of its Waterford facility. We all very much support and welcome that announcement. I think we will all join in commending the workers whose sacrifice has effectively secured the future of the plant there. We all very much welcome that the investment by Bausch and Lomb will be supported by IDA Ireland capital grants. The Bausch and Lomb vice president of manufacturing was in Ireland to meet unions and management. I also note the Senator's point that there has been very good cross-party work by public representatives from the area, including the Leader, Senator Cummins. That is very good to hear. The Senator also called for a debate on regional development given the particularly high levels of unemployment in the south east which has been a real issue for many years. We can certainly have that debate on the implementation of reports on the topic.

Senator Conway also spoke on mental health services and called on the Seanad Public Consultation Committee to take up the issue of mental health services in our next consultation process, which is a very good idea. We should put it before the Seanad Public Consultation Committee. We have had some really good consultation exercises on issues such as cancer prevention, the rights of older people and the implementation of international human rights standards.

Mental health services is a very appropriate topic on which to have a consultation with different stakeholders. We might pursue it in the next session of the Seanad in September.

We all join with Senator Conway in wishing baby Gavin from Greystones the very best with his lifesaving treatment in Texas. I commend the fund-raising efforts of all the many people who have helped to send him there.

Senator O'Keeffe mentioned the launch of the Leitrim Recreation Strategy on Monday and called for a debate on rights of way. As she said, the latter is very closely linked to walking rights and tourism more generally. Therefore, it would be useful to have a debate on the matter. Also, Deputy Robert Dowds put forward a Private Members' Bill in the Dáil on walking rights. As Senator O'Keeffe said, the issue of rights of way, and obstacles to those who wish to walk and engage in walking holidays in Ireland, means the matter needs to be resolved. I shall ask the Leader to arrange the debate.

Finally, Senator Mullins supported Senator Conway in his call for the PCC to deal with the topic of mental health and welcomed the legislation on sunbeds, which we all welcome. There has been some very positive publicity on it. There are some very nice photographs of young people wearing debutante outfits to highlight and publicise the new law which will be called the Public Health (Sunbeds) Act 2014.

The legislation is due to take effect before the end of July and is very much welcome. It will ban the use of sunbeds by persons under 18 years of age, make it an offence to sell or hire a sunbed to anyone under 18 and it will ensure sunbed operators make clear to all users the dangers of sunbed use. It is a major pubic health initiative and a robust tool to prevent the dangerous effects of ultraviolet radiation, and in particular to protect children. It is very positive legislation and I am glad to see it being highlighted in this House and the media.

Paddy Burke (Fine Gael)
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Senator Darragh O'Brien has moved an amendment to the Order of Business: "That a debate with the Minister of State, Deputy Kathleen Lynch, on the current situation in the mental health service, with particular reference to understaffing and individual case guidelines be taken today". Is the amendment being pressed?

Darragh O'Brien (Fianna Fail)
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Yes.

Paddy Burke (Fine Gael)
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I ask the Acting Leader to propose the suspension of the House until 11.45 a.m.

Ivana Bacik (Independent)
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I propose a suspension until 11.45 a.m.

Paddy Burke (Fine Gael)
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Is that agreed? Agreed.