Mental health services an ‘easy target’ says Fianna Fáil

Fianna Fáil has described mental health services is an "easy target" after Minister of State Kathleen Lynch said Vision for Change will not be implemented fully by the conclusion of the Government's term.

Vision for Change is the blueprint for the development of mental health services.

It was adopted as official policy in 2006 and has cross-party support.

Ms Lynch said the programme had been “slow in starting” but a lot of work had been done.

“It won’t be completed by the end of the term of this Government, and that’s just being honest about it. We would be hopeful that because there is such agreement on it whoever the next Government is , that the progress will continue,” she told RTÉ.

Fianna Fáil Senator Marc MacSharry launched proposed legislation to fund suicide prevention and mental health services today, which he said would facilitate the accelerated roll out of measures contained in Vision for Change.

“Mental health has always been the easy target. With all the rhetoric of monies being ring-fenced and monies being made available the reality is it’s the first pot to be raided any time there’s a crisis,” he said.

“Here’s a policy that transcends Governments in the sense that everybody signed up to it. The last Government, this Government, presumably the future Government embraced the fact that Vision for Change is the established mental health strategy that is going to make a difference,” he said.

“But yet we refuse to give it the resources and structure required to get it out there, and that’s what this is all about.”

The Suicide Prevention and Mental Health Bill 2014 will be introduced in the Seanad on Wednesday.

Mr MacSharry said he was sure Ms Lynch would like to support his bill. However, he said Taoiseach Enda Kenny, Minister for Public Expenditure and Reform Brendan Howlin and Minister for Health James Reilly “hold all the cards in the context of providing the correct resources.”

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