The Mental Health Commission (MHC) is an independent statutory body, established under the Mental Health Act 2001.
The Commission’s principal functions are to promote, encourage, and foster the establishment and maintenance of high standards and good practices in the delivery of mental health services and to take all reasonable steps to protect the interests of persons detained in approved centres under the Act.
Department officials directed this query to the Mental Health Commission and the following is their response:
“The MHC replied to a request from the Oireachtas Committee on Health on 11 November 2022, at which time it was stated that this is a matter for the HSE as the MHC has no statutory remit to set targets for service provision.
"For information, the Inspector of Mental Health Services has powers under the Mental Health Acts 2001–2018 to carry out reviews from time to time and to report on various aspects of the care and treatment given to people in receipt of mental health services in the State. The report entitled ‘Rehabilitation and Recovery Mental Health Services in Ireland 2018/2019’ was one such report and reflected ‘point-in-time’ findings based on fieldwork conducted across 2018 and 2019. In general, the Inspector’s reports, based on these national reviews, are aimed at informing national policy and improvements, which will benefit all citizens. The content of such periodic, thematic reviews does not enable the MHC to make informed commentary or set targets with regard to ongoing resource allocation decisions, both of which are matters for the HSE.”
