Mental Health Bill 2024: Committee Stage (Resumed)
Seanad Éireann — 2026-01-22
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Mary Butler (FF), Waterford

As the Senator was late coming in, it is important to put on the record of the House the fact that in the past ten years, no child or young person in this country under the age of 18 was administered ECT. It does not happen, but I just felt it was really important to cement that in the Bill.
The Senator mentioned the PNA. I am into my sixth year as Minister of State with responsibility for mental health. It is really unusual in the Houses of the Oireachtas for someone to be in the same role for that amount of time. I work very closely with the PNA. I thank Aisling Culhane, who is a member of the union and with whom I engage frequently. She sat on the national implementation and monitoring committee, NIMC, for the past five years. Her term is up, so a new representative will be appointed. It is really important to acknowledge all the work that is done. About 12,500 people are employed by the HSE to work in mental health services across the country, from every level and the whole way down, including psychiatrists, psychologists, social workers, advanced nurse practitioners, clinical nurse specialists, dietitians and administrative staff who support nursing staff. A huge amount of work is done on a daily basis. These staff work in very difficult situations and are obliged to respond to any issues that arise in real time.
This brings me to another point. I am not sure whether we will discuss it again, but just in case anyone did not hear me loud and clear, last year, two young people were admitted to adult psychiatric wards. I have said it so many times - there were two cases. When I came into the role, there were probably around 100 cases. Nobody wants to see that. Clinicians do not want to see it, but they have to make decisions in real time. I will always choose life over death. That is why I will not legislate for it.
I want to talk a bit about restrictive practices. Irish mental health services have shown considerable leadership in the area of human rights and in the reduction of restrictive practices. This is why I mentioned the 12,500 people who work across mental health. I salute those in the public, private and voluntary sectors. The use of restrictive practices has been falling for a number of years, particularly since 2018. Ireland now has one of the lowest rates across comparable jurisdictions according to the Mental Health Commission. Recent data from the commission shows that the rate of this decline has approximately doubled since the introduction of its revised rules and codes of practice, which came into effect in January 2023. I thank the College of Psychiatrists of Ireland for its co-operation in respect of this matter. Other important factors influencing this decline include training initiatives introduced by the HSE and improving training and understanding around human rights and the harmful effects of restrictive practices.
The Mental Health Commission data shows that in 2023 and 2024, there was a 34% reduction in the number of reported episodes of seclusion and physical restraint. Since 2018, there has been a 62% reduction in all restrictive practices. Irish mental health services must be commended for their continued and sustained positive efforts in this area. We can always do better, and I know we will.

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Record URI: https://data.oireachtas.ie/akn/ie/debateRecord/seanad/2026-01-22/debate/main
Retrieved: 2026-08-14T04:54:32+00:00
Sitting date: 2026-01-22