Dáil Éireann Debate, Tuesday - 13 December 2011
433 Deputy Peter Mathews asked the Minister for Health his plans to implement the recommendations of the 2007 Oireachtas Joint Committee on Health and Children in relation to the Irish Medicines Board to ensure that any revision of the Mental Health Act 2001 complies with human rights; and if he will make a statement on the matter. [39459/11]
View answerThe Programme for Government contains a commitment to review the Mental Health Act 2001, "informed by human rights standards and in consultation with service users, carers and other stakeholders."
The Government and I attach great importance to this review and following my appointment as Minister of State with responsibility for Mental Health policy, I established a Steering Group to oversee the review within three months of taking up office. Included in the Group's Terms of Reference is a commitment to undertake the review having regard to the provisions of the UN Convention on the Rights of People with Disabilities.
To ensure that the review attracted wide attention, a public consultation campaign was launched in September and a series of meetings with key stakeholders are being held to discuss the issues arising. Among the organisations which the Steering Group have met are the Irish Human Rights Commission, Amnesty International and Mental Health Reform, all of whom, among others, have a strong focus on the human rights aspect of our mental health legislation.
When the meetings are completed, it is the intention of the Steering Group to produce an Interim Report setting out the results of the consultation process and the main issues and questions to be resolved in the full review. The substantive work of the review would then commence in January with the final report to be completed by June 2012.
