I welcome the opportunity to discuss long Covid health services and I thank the Deputies for tabling this Private Members’ motion. I am responding to the motion on behalf of the Minister for Health, Deputy Stephen Donnelly, and the Government. I am aware that long Covid is having a devastating effect on people. The Minister for Health, the Government and myself are committed to ensuring that care is in place for those who need it. Some €2.2 million was allocated for 2022 to put in place a service to support those w…

Our thoughts, prayers and sympathies are with the families, friends and community of Catherine O'Donnell, James Monaghan, Martin McGill, Jessica Gallagher, James O'Flaherty, Martina Martin, Hugh Kelly, Robert Garwe, Shauna Flanagan Garwe and Leona Harper. I drove from Sligo to Creeslough to be with my colleagues that Saturday morning. There was an outpouring of grief but also an outpouring of solidarity. The air was heavy with grief and trauma. Having called to the various centres, I could see that a plan had been …

I thank Senator Ahearn for raising this important matter today. On 9 September, the Minister of State, Deputy Butler, launched the child and adolescent mental health services, CAMHS, intellectual disability model of service. This marked a significant achievement for mental health services in line with the Government’s ongoing commitment to improve all aspects of mental health services and ensure they remain person-centred and accessible to all. As the Senator knows, the CAMHS intellectual disability model of servic…

I thank Senator Ahearn for raising this very important matter. He has been very consistent on the lack of services. The CAMHS intellectual disability model of service is being progressed in CHO 3 and CHO 5. It reflects the ongoing commitment of the Government and the HSE to ensure that mental health services for children and adolescents with intellectual disabilities are on a par with services available to those in the general population. This objective will be enhanced with record funding of €1.2 billion for menta…

I am taking this question on behalf of the Minister of State, Deputy Butler. Day care centres are fundamental to the health and well-being of our older population. They play a key role in enabling older people to live independently in their own communities. Their reopening has been a priority for my colleague, the Minister of State with responsibility for mental health and older people, Deputy Butler, since their necessary closure in 2020. This process began in the second half of 2021 and continues into 2022. By th…

As I said, the HSE is looking to identify an alternative site on the St. Brendan's campus but, unfortunately, the community nursing unit is not an option as a long-term location for the St. Brendan's day care service. In the interim, the HSE is operating a service three days a week. The Deputy raised some interesting questions regarding the capacity issue and the fact that the site is being used by administrative staff. He asked how long the process will take, and while I do not know, I will find out. This issue ne…

I understand the Loughrea centre is open one day a week for a maximum of 14 attendees and, according to my notes, this is due to a HIQA stipulation. There are 23 services in Galway, of which 22 are open, so the Deputy's local service is the only one that remains closed. The HSE has assured the Department that it is actively looking to identify an alternative site on the St. Brendan’s campus and I hope this can be resolved. I will convey the Deputy's views to the Minister of State.

The total allocation for mental health services in budget 2023 is more than €1.2 billion. This significant investment will enable implementation of many of the short-term and medium-term measures in our mental health policy, Sharing the Vision. We are enhancing mental health supports across a broad continuum. These range from mental health promotion, prevention and early intervention to acute and specialist service delivery. The mild mental health needs of adults and children with intellectual disabilities are gene…

I am taking this question on behalf of the Minister of State, Deputy Rabbitte, to whom I will bring back the Deputy's views. Seemingly, a CAMHS mental health intellectual disability consultant is being sought at present for Louth-Meath mental health services. The job was originally advertised for Louth-Meath and Cavan-Monaghan, with Cavan-Monaghan having governance. The post was interviewed for and offered to only one candidate who met the criteria. Unfortunately, the post was declined. Louth-Meath mental health se…

I agree with Deputy Fitzpatrick. People with intellectual disabilities should have access to supports for mental health services in the same way as the general population around the country within a framework that is multidisciplinary and catchment area-based. Teams should have the appropriate training and expertise and should be suitably resourced. As the Deputy will be aware, 3.8% of the population has intellectual disabilities and there is an increased prevalence of mental health problems. Up to 25% of those wit…

I thank the Deputy for raising this issue. I have been to the county, including Clonmel, and seen the great work that the services there are doing. National drug treatment data show that 380 cases were treated for problem drug use in Tipperary in 2021. Of those, 114 were treated for cocaine as the main problem. Separately, there were 294 cases treated for problem alcohol use. Drug services in Tipperary are provided by the HSE, regional drugs and alcohol task forces and section 39-funded community and voluntary grou…

A great deal of good and necessary work is being done and I thank all of the stakeholders - the drug and alcohol task forces and everyone providing a service - in this difficult situation. We secured €7 million for new developments. Some €1 million of that will go towards strengthening the monitoring of emerging drug trends and expanding community-based services as part of the community services enhancement fund. Recently, I announced an allocation of €1.5 million for a three-year drug prevention and education prog…

The Government's health-led approach to drug and alcohol use is set out in the national drugs strategy, Reducing Harm, Supporting Recovery. My priorities for the strategy are to strengthen the prevention of drug and alcohol use and the associated harms among children and young people and to enhance access to and delivery of drug and alcohol services in the community. The Deputy has raised an issue that is impacting many cities, towns and villages around the country. We have to strengthen drug monitoring and harm re…

I thank the Deputy for raising this important issue. Employment status has implications for PRSI contributions and associated social welfare benefits, tax treatment and employment rights. Many statutory employment rights are available only to employees as opposed to those who are self-employed. There are three statutory bodies in place that make determinations on the employment status of a person for the purpose of PRSI, tax and employment rights, the first of which is the scope section in the Department of Social …

As I said, I understand RTÉ has engaged in an internal review process, carried out by Eversheds Sutherland, and the scope section-----

The Department of Social Protection is investigating this matter. I will bring the Deputy's views to the Minister of State and ask that he seek a meeting with RTÉ to try to resolve the issue. As I said, the Government takes seriously the issue of false self-employment. I hope there will be an agreement in place within the next few days. I can only bring the Deputy's concerns to the Minister of State, which I will do this evening.

I thank Deputy Gannon for raising this issue, as he has done many times both in the Dáil and privately. I thank him for his commitment to it. The issues raised in the "Prime Time" programme on drug and alcohol use on O'Connell Street fall under the remit of several Departments and agencies, including the Department of Justice, An Garda Síochána, Dublin City Council and the Department of Health. I welcome the opportunity to address this topic from a health perspective. The Department of Health is very supportive of …

The Government admits that there are significant specific challenges facing vulnerable individuals utilising homeless and addiction services in the north inner city. The Deputy made a point about emerging trends. A group has been set up to look at emerging trends. As I said, we saw where crack cocaine was taking hold in the north inner city, in Ballymun and in Tallaght, as well as in Limerick and we addressed that with funding. I visited Tallaght only two weeks ago. Those I met said that it had made a difference. P…

I will find out if they have met. A lot of the time it is the officials who meet. I have met my counterparts in the Department of Housing, Local Government and Heritage on a few occasions. We also have the national drugs strategy. A midterm review was undertaken, and many of the emerging issues and trends were included in that review. I will find out for the Deputy what exactly has happened, which groups have met and when they are due to meet next.

I want to thank Senator Conway at the outset and indeed many others for raising important matter and for providing me with an opportunity to speak about it in the House. I am sure that the Senator will appreciate that because a number of cases concerning thalidomide are before the High Court, it is not possible to comment on matters that are sub judice . However, the Government recognises that thalidomide survivors face very real challenges in everyday life in the context of their injuries. I am glad to inform the …