Mental Health Bill 2024: Committee Stage (Resumed)
Seanad Éireann — 2025-12-17
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Victor Boyhan (IND), Agricultural Panel

I am delighted the Minister of State has brought this up, and I certainly commit to looking into it. I will not say it now. I will not make it up while I am on my feet. I served on the board of St. Patrick's University Hospital where children were detained and where the courts incarcerated children aged 16 and 17 and also those aged 15. I am also very familiar with the Prison Service from my work with it. I was appointed by a Minister to both institutions. I am very familiar with the word "incarcerated". In the context of incarcerated to psychiatric hospitals, I did not say that. I said children were incarcerated in care.
I am very happy to give the Minister of State the absolute commitment - and I thank her for bringing this to my attention - that this afternoon I will look at the of everything that has been said here. If there is clarification required, I will be more than happy to come in and provide it next week. Let us be clear of the facts. I ask the Minister of State to look at the printout also. I do not know the point she is making, but she is happy enough. I am happy to give her an assurance that I will look at this in the context in which I have spoken about it and in the context of the definition.
Let us not lose sight of or deflect from the real problem.

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Record URI: https://data.oireachtas.ie/akn/ie/debateRecord/seanad/2025-12-17/debate/main
Retrieved: 2026-08-14T04:54:28+00:00
Sitting date: 2025-12-17