Mental Health Bill 2024: Committee Stage
Seanad Éireann — 2025-12-02
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Mary Butler (FF), Waterford

A child is detained if he or she meets the criteria to be detained but, if it is okay with the Senator, I will get a note done on that part in advance of next week. It might be helpful to tease out all those issues that are there. Some of those issues, obviously, relate to justice and that is where the crossover is coming into the Bill. Some are in relation to children and others relate to mental health. In respect of a child who is involuntarily detained, he or she is involuntarily detained for a reason. That is my opinion. The child is very ill. If the child is refusing and the treating clinicians believe they have to go to the courts to make sure, that will be in a case of life or death and they will do it with the best of intentions. We will get a note to clarify that exactly, which will give the Senators more cover when we are discussing it.

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Record URI: https://data.oireachtas.ie/akn/ie/debateRecord/seanad/2025-12-02/debate/main
Retrieved: 2026-08-14T04:54:23+00:00
Sitting date: 2025-12-02