Mental Health Services
Dail Éireann — 2026-07-09
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Liam Quaide (SD), Cork East

I already established, earlier this year, that the staffing levels of CAMHS-ID teams across the country are abysmal. These are children and teenagers with very complex needs. They experience major challenges across all aspects of their daily lives, including with communication and learning. Some have physical and sensory needs, as well as significant mental health difficulties. Yet, the specialist service meant to support them has been funded at less than half of what the HSE says is required. We need to be clear that the under-resourcing of these teams is not a question of vacancies or difficulty recruiting clinicians. It is a clear case of the Government not even funding the service to anywhere near the level that is required. That pattern of under-resourcing is pervasive across mental health services. This is a particularly vulnerable cohort of young people, and the lack of investment is particularly stark. The Minister of State should not look at me with an expression of incredulity because we have seen this across primary care and in child, adult and older adult mental health services. This is all out in the public domain. Unless there is sustained public and media focus on this, I fear these children and families will continue to be left waiting because the Government responds to pressure, not need.

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Record URI: https://data.oireachtas.ie/akn/ie/debateRecord/dail/2026-07-09/debate/main
Retrieved: 2026-09-14T01:01:07+00:00
Sitting date: 2026-07-09