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

I will just go back to it. This amendment is technical. It clarifies that a capacity assessment only applies to those over 16 years of age. That is what it is doing. Children under 16 will not have a capacity assessment because consent is granted by the parents. These are those where it is determined whether they have capacity through a capacity assessment. In cases where there is no support from the parents, a capacity assessment might be necessary. These are the pieces that have been teased out already. They are just saying that capacity now refers to those aged 16 and 17. Previously, it referred to those aged over 18.

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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