Gino Kenny welcomes mental health bill, urges faster enactment
Deputy Gino Kenny welcomed the mental health bill, praising its rights-based approach and urging faster enactment of key provisions, particularly CAMHS regulation. He called for timely, accessible treatment, raised concerns about involuntary admission procedures and restrictive practices affecting young people, and highlighted gaps in service access and funding.
Background and long overdue review
The deputy noted this is the first comprehensive review in 23 years and called the bill "a long time coming." He praised the shift away from antiquated practices and terminology and thanked Mental Health Reform for helping him understand the legislation and its reforms.
Rights-based approach and legislative context
Kenny welcomed the rights emphasis in the bill and referenced the assistant decision-making bill as an important move from paternalism toward rights-based healthcare. He also echoed Deputy Roisin Shorthold's points on phraseology and the need for modern, rights-oriented language in mental health law.
Concerns on involuntary admission and restraint
He described involuntary admission as a complex area and warned against routine police involvement, saying family members and healthcare professionals are more appropriate intervenors. Kenny raised particular alarm about restrictive practices used with young people, including overmedication, violent restraint and seclusion.
CAMHS regulation and staged implementation
Kenny identified regulation around CAMHS as one of the most important parts of the legislation and urged the minister to consider early, staged enactment of specific parts. He warned that full enactment could take years and argued that critical regulations should be put in place as soon as the bill is legislated.
Access gaps and funding implications
While welcoming reform, he stressed the law is not perfect and highlighted "huge gaps" in access to timely mental health care. Kenny called for better and more targeted funding to ensure people can actually get interventions when they need them, warning that lack of access leaves a serious grievance in society.
Outlook on change and limitations
Kenny said the bill is a step forward and reflects the evolution of mental health services, but cautioned it will not solve all problems. He urged continued attention to implementation, timely treatment, and protections for 16- and 17-year-olds who should have a say in their care.
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I want to welcome this bill, Minister. I think it's a long time coming. It's about, I think, about two and a half years ago since it was before the Subcommittee on Mental Health and I don't know why it's taken that long in terms of coming to this juncture but I'm sure you have your reasons and it's 23 years ago since the last comprehensive review of mental health care in Ireland and when you look at that bill now it was probably kind of, I suppose, cutting edge to a certain degree 23 years ago. but there's obviously very antiquated practices, treatment practices and phraseology and terminology that you would never ever use now. So it's good that we're kind of looking back to look forward in terms of how we treat people with mental health difficulties and the treatment that they get because it's clear that if people with mental health difficulties get the right intervention, the outcomes are extremely, extremely good, you know, and that's the good news but they have to get that treatment and they have to get that timely treatment. And just in terms of my insight, I want to really thank mental health reform in terms of their kind of, their, to give me an understanding of this legislation and also over the last number of years and given us an understanding of mental health reform because there needs to be very serious reform in terms of mental health in Ireland because of the, I suppose, really good that you know we're talking about things because I think when you talk about something when you don't bottle them in it actually kind of it makes it you make it makes it you feel better but obviously it is good for your well-being and so forth. I just want to kind of just touch on a number of aspects of the bill Minister and I know Deputy Roisin Shorthold was talking about the phraseology and the kind of rights-based emphasis to this bill and it's good that you know with the assistant decision-making bill that was very very important in terms of a rights-based rather than a paternalistic approach to healthcare at least we have that you know and I think that's very very very welcome. Just in terms of involuntary admission I think this is quite complex and you know we should never be in a situation where members of the guards are kind of intervening generally in this situation you know it's not their fault but obviously this was part of I suppose a different mindset 20 over 20 years ago where you know the police had made that intervention and I think that could be very very problematic very very problematic and I think it's good that we're changing that now in terms of family members and healthcare professionals and I think that's that's extremely important in terms of where this is going. In terms of the regulation around CAMHS I think it's extremely important and probably the most one of the most important parts of this legislation now I presume this legislation is going to pass in the lifetime of this government but when that's going to be enacted that's a different matter altogether because this could take this could take a while before it's enacted so I just wonder could you be open to certain parts of I don't know if this is possible certain parts of the bill being enacted you know before I suppose if it's legislated but actually you know because we could be waiting years for certain parts particularly around the CAMHS regulations I think that's probably very very important that regulation takes place in the next soon as this is legislated for. Just finally Minister, in round the rights of under 18s and particularly 16 and 17 year olds I think it's good that you know this age group has a say in how actually you know how mental health treatment they get I think that's very very important because in the past young people are kind of dismissed and again it's that kind of top-down kind of ideology you know that's just not healthy in terms of overall health care in terms of again another kind of complex area that probably needs to be spoke about and is renowned restrictive practices and practices around restraint around kind of seclusion of young people and how uh that is um I suppose dealt with in the past uh people were sometimes over medicated sometimes people were violently restrained uh that you know if we talk about that now we we it would be completely alien to how actually mental health services have uh have have worked and mental health services are you know have evolved in the last 150 years you know there was practices that were done that were just you would you know you couldn't believe that actually they were happening but it's evolving you know uh and true that evolution and true new legislation which this is trying to do it's not perfect by any means and there is huge gaps in terms of uh access to mental health care there there's all this that that is the kind of I think the open wound in terms of when people need that health care at this particular time they can't find it then that leaves a kind of a huge grievance in society and I think that's something that as as a government hopefully you can um with true I think better funding and more targeted funding so I think minister overall I think it's uh welcomed in terms of this review and terms of this legislation and it's not perfect by any means but it definitely goes I think some way in trying to address not only mental health care now for over the next couple to two decades thank you so you you you you
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