I move amendment No. 41: In page 63, to delete lines 13 to 23

I move amendment No. 42: In page 63, line 34, to delete “or further treatment period”.

I move amendment No. 43: In page 64, line 1, to delete “or further treatment period”.

I move amendment No. 44: In page 64, lines 4 and 5, to delete “or further treatment period”

I move amendment No. 45: In page 64, line 7, to delete “or any further treatment period”

I move amendment No. 48: In page 64, line 31, to delete “and any further treatment period”.

I move amendment No. 49: In page 64, line 39, to delete “a mental disorder” and substitute “mental health difficulties”.

I echo Deputy Clarke's concerns about this. The Bill provides no specific safeguards or statutory provisions governing the use of chemical restraint on persons who are subject to involuntary detention and treatment. It does not even really acknowledge the reality of chemical restraint. Chemical restraint happens quite often. It involves administering powerful sedatives to people who are in extreme states of mind. While the intentions may be good, there is a need for very clear safeguards. In the context of the huma…

I move amendment No. 52: In page 69, between lines 6 and 7, to insert the following: “Chemical restraint 57. (1) In this section, “chemical restraint” means the use of medication to control or modify a person’s behaviour when no medically identified condition is being treated, or where the treatment is not necessary for the condition or the intended effect of the drug is to sedate the person for convenience or disciplinary purposes. (2) A person shall not apply chemical means of bodily restraint to a person unless …

I move amendment No. 60: In page 75, between lines 20 and 21, to insert the following: “(4) Where a child is involuntarily admitted to a registered adult acute mental health centre pursuant to an involuntary admission order under section 66 that this period shall be no longer than 72 hours.”. The significant decrease in the number of admissions of children to adult psychiatric wards is very welcome. However, the absence of legislative safeguards in the Bill leaves children vulnerable to this practice becoming more …

I commend the Labour Party on its motion. We fully support it. It has been an honour to meet in recent weeks with Safeguarding Ireland, Care Champions, and the Irish Association of Social Workers to discuss adult safeguarding and systemic problems within our nursing home sector and other care facilities. I look forward to engaging with Inclusion Ireland, Sage Advocacy and others to this end in the coming weeks and months. There is consensus among the advocacy groups that the Law Reform Commission report into adult …

As the Minister knows, many settlements in east Cork were devastated by flooding during Storm Babet in October 2023. I met with the Midleton and East Cork Flood Protection Group last Friday, alongside my colleague, Councillor Eamonn Horgan. There is growing concern and frustration within the community about the rate of progress of flood relief works. We have had major delays with the installation of floodgates on homes and businesses and there are questions about their quality. The Midleton flood relief scheme is m…

There have been some exciting developments in east Cork rail over the past 16 years. The return of the Midleton to Cork line in 2009 has been hugely progressive for the region and the number of passengers is increasing year on year. Ten-minute frequencies from 2026 onwards will be a game changer as will the proposed new stations for Water Rock and Carrigtwohill west. Cobh, Carrigtwohill, Glounthaune and Midleton are all very well connected with the city by rail. However, Youghal has been totally left out of these a…

I support my colleagues Deputies Coppinger, O'Reilly and Wall in respect of amendment No. 1. I appeal to the Minister, in the spirit of meaningful collaboration on the Bill, to take on their very reasonable arguments, which have been very well articulated. If clear unfairness is identified in a Bill, it is very important that it is acknowledged and that there is not a default Government position of pushing it through without having a very reasoned response. I appeal to the Minister in that regard.

The scale of the crisis in primary care services for young people is so serious that the HSE is avoiding parliamentary questions about it. Only after 11 weeks did I receive a response from the HSE Dublin and north-east region on its psychology waiting lists, and no wonder. The longest waiting time there involves a child who was initially referred to disability services an incredible nine years ago. I have not received any response yet from the HSE Dublin and midlands region 12 weeks after submitting a parliamentary…

-----that sees staffing of essential services as a cost, not as an investment.

I have been working with a parents' campaign group in Youghal in recent months, which is seeking the establishment of a new secondary level special education school in east Cork for children whose needs cannot be met by the autism hub in the local secondary school. As we know, parents can be left in a deeply unsettling state of uncertainty in the lead-up to a decision on their school placement application. Many families in east Cork are facing the very grim prospect of commuting to Dungarvan, into Cork city or even…

I move amendment No. 274: In page 159, line 32, to delete “a mental disorder” and substitute “mental health difficulties”.

I move amendment No. 275: In page 160, lines 4 and 5, to delete “a mental disorder” and substitute “mental health difficulties”.

I move amendment No. 276: In page 160, line 7, to delete “a mental disorder” and substitute “mental health difficulties”.