Colm Keaveney (Galway East, Fianna Fail)
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298. To ask the Minister for Health the number of mental health posts due, under the budget 2015 allocation of €35 million, to be advertised at the end of Quarter 1 2015; and if he will make a statement on the matter. [17287/15]

Kathleen Lynch (Cork North Central, Labour)
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The National Service Plan 2015 provides funding of €792 million for HSE Mental Health Services. This includes additional funding of €35 million held by the Department of Health pending agreement with the HSE on how this will be spent.

Discussions are currently taking place between the Department and the HSE on the final allocation of these funds. In line with the priority areas for development of mental health services, set out in A Vision for Change, I announced in Budget 2015 that the additional funding would be directed to the continued prioritised development and reconfiguration of both General Adult and Child and Adolescent Community Mental Health teams, and also to more specialist areas within the Mental Health Services. I hope to finalise the allocation of the additional 2015 funds with the HSE in the very near future.