I can see and hear the passion. The Deputy is right that respite is absolutely crucial for families, whether it is children or adults. I thank him for raising this and can assure him the Government is committed to the continued expansion and development of respite services as set out in the programme for Government and the new National Human Rights Strategy for Disabled People 2025-2030. To support the HSE in its work to provide and develop respite services in recognition of the importance of support for disabled p…

I thank the Deputy from my neighbouring county for raising this important matter. It is a key priority for the Minister of State, Deputy Butler, who, unfortunately, cannot take this Topical Issue, and for the Government that people experiencing mental health difficulties receive the appropriate level of care they require in the most suitable location in the community that best meets their needs. Achieving this involves reform of mental health services and developing fit-for-purpose community services that meet peop…

I thank the Deputy again for bringing this important issue up. I assure the House that I understand, as the Deputy said, how important it is for all persons with mental health difficulties to have the relevant mental health services in place from the HSE in the location that best suits their needs. The Deputy mentioned the four centres and that they should be based in different areas. I will check that out with the Minister of State, Deputy Butler. I will also check the site with the HSE. The Deputy said Erkina Hou…

I welcome the publication of the action plan on housing and the target to deliver 300,000 homes through a whole-of-government approach. It is ambitious but appropriate. We need ambition. Housing affects everyone in society, whether someone waiting on a local authority housing list, a young person hoping to buy or older people looking for more suitable housing. This issue is urgent. In my area of Carlow-Kilkenny, I meet constituents every week. Single people are finding it very hard to get one-bed houses or one-bed …

I am taking this matter on behalf of the Minister for Health, Deputy Carroll MacNeill. I thank the Senator for bringing this matter to our attention. In particular, I thank Shauna, who has spoken very publicly on her challenges and what has happened to her. That is really important for all of us. I again thank Senator Stephenson for raising Shauna's case today. Today gives me an opportunity to update the House on the ongoing work to improve women's health outcomes and experiences. The Minister for Health has previo…

I thank the Senator and I want to thank Shauna. Today was just about guidelines for information. The Minister has approved funding for an awareness campaign, which is being developed through the national women and infants programme in the HSE. I will get the Senator more information on that. The Minister and the Government share the Senator's commitment to providing women in Ireland with a healthcare system that is responsive to the issues raised today. Women account for 51% of our population. We need to make sure …

I thank the Deputy for a very important question. As he knows, the independent evaluation of the national drugs strategy, Reducing Harm, Supporting Recovery, assisted with the expansion of harm reduction in a significant way. Our new drugs strategy will be launched next year, hopefully. That is very important to us. We have found that the harm reduction initiatives were a central component of the health-led approach to drug use, with a focus on reducing the adverse health and social impacts associated with drug use…

Everything is being assessed. The evaluation of what is happening with drugs around the country is being looked at. As I said at the meeting the other day, we have 610 services around the country. We are very mindful of that and that all have equal access to services. We are assessing every opportunity here, working within the Department, the HSE and, as the Deputy knows, our drugs task forces, which do huge work within our communities. A few months ago, I announced detail of a further €1.89 million for community-b…

Absolutely. All the Deputy's concerns are very important. We are talking about lives, and it is very important that we remember that one life lost is one too many. We have to do what we can to save lives and make sure we work with what we have and the services we have. We have to make sure that we deliver the services we can deliver and that people who want to access them can do so. We also have to work with their families. We have to make sure we have services there to help families. It is a matter of all of us wo…

I thank the Deputy. I am taking this question on behalf of the Minister of State, Deputy Mary Butler, who unfortunately cannot be here today. The total allocation for mental health services in 2026 is almost €1.6 billion, the sixth year in a row in which the mental health budget has increased. This increase in funding for mental health services will enable continued policy implementation and service improvements in line with our national mental health policy, Sharing the Vision, and our national suicide and self ha…

I absolutely agree. The Minister of State, Deputy Butler, is very passionate about this and has been working very hard on it. There are three new crisis resolution services, that is, crisis cafés, to support people in distress. They are located in Donegal, Kerry and Tullamore in the midlands. An allocation of €4 million has been given for this. Funding of €1 million has been provided for 12 additional suicide services where nurses support people in distress who present to GPs in the community. There is funding of €…

I certainly will go back to the Minister of State, Deputy Butler, on those very important points. I absolutely agree we need more beds. The Minister, Deputy Carroll MacNeill, is very much aware of that. It is something the Government is looking at and the Minister definitely will work on it. There is a challenge in dealing with suicide in extremely complex cases. We have seen cases where a single event is the factor that leads someone to take his or her own life. There are huge issues there. We need to get supports…

I thank the Minister for her opening statement. I know how hard she has been working on this for the last few months. My heart goes out to the families. The Minister and I are thinking of them, the children who are on waiting lists waiting for surgery and those who have lost children. It is right to say that we are not where we need to be, as the Minister has said. We need to address the urgent problems in spinal care, despite sincere efforts of successive Ministers, and that is true. I acknowledge again the Minist…

Municipal districts.

I thank the Deputy. This is a very serious issue for children who are waiting for public dental assessment in the Deputy's county of Monaghan. The HSE oral healthcare service aims to provide an oral examination and necessary treatment for children between second and sixth class and, in some cases, fourth class. Emergency care is provided for children of all ages up to 16 and for those with complex and additional needs. Due to the nature of the oral health examination programme, it does not meet the usual definition…

I have taken the Deputy's points on board. She also spoke about Cavan, which was the one over the one-year period. I will bring that back to the Minister. The Government is committed to addressing immediate difficulties patients are experiencing in accessing oral healthcare services as well as fundamentally reforming dental services through the implementation of the Smile agus Sláinte programme. The two key goals of the policy are to provide supports to enable every individual to achieve their personal best oral he…

I thank the Deputy for raising this very important issue. The national drugs strategy, Reducing Harm Supporting Recovery, sets out the Government’s strategy to address the harm caused by substance misuse in Ireland up to 2025. Work is ongoing in the development of a successor strategy. We are working on that and it is to do with everybody. I am making sure that everybody is involved in it. I am keenly aware that drug and alcohol task forces play a key role in implementing the national drugs strategy at the local le…

I am very much aware of the excellent work the task forces do. They are very much part of what we see when we look at what services are needed within the communities. The Department and I are working with the HSE to include the 24 task forces in everything. We have an all-together group. All of us working together is not about being excluded. I am making sure everyone is included. Anything to do with drugs and families is a huge concern to me in the sense that we are talking about people's lives here. I can assure …

I will be working with the different groups. The reference group has been set up, but I will continue to meet the chairs of the task forces. This needs to go back to the task force groups that the Deputy is working with. I can assure the Deputy that I appreciate the work they do. Auto-enrolment is a whole-of-government approach, working through the Department. It is something the Department is working on. There have been no cuts to funding within my own sector. We got an increase this year. I launched DRIVE recentl…

I am delighted to inform the House on recent developments and achievements on drug policy. The Government will not oppose the motion. It is not helpful to get into a political dispute about drugs policy. It is important not to argue over something that affects the lives of so many. As new Minister of State, I assure Members that I am very mindful that we are talking about families and people's lives. It is my absolute aim to make sure I work with the Department and other Members to work together on this. The previo…