Dáil Éireann Debate, Tuesday - 18 October 2016
103. Deputy Richard Boyd Barrett asked the Minister for Health the level of funding he is committing in budget 2017 to mental health; the way in which this compares with the percentage of the health budget that is spent on mental health in Northern Ireland; and his views on the impact this will have on reaching the standards recommended in A Vision for Change. [30618/16]
Amharc ar fhreagraThe allocation for Mental Health in 2017 will be €851.3 million, an increase of €24.7 million, or approximately 3%, over 2016. In addition, a further €50 million will be provided for the construction of the new national forensic mental health service in Portrane.
The figure of €851.3 million represents approximately 6% of the total Health Budget of €14.2 billion.
The total Budget for the Department of Health in Northern Ireland is £4.88 billion (as at January 2016). According to Northern Ireland's Minister for Health, Michelle O'Neill (in an Assembly debate on Mental Health on 28th June 2016), the budget for Mental Health is now £250 million. This is approximately 5.2% of the total Health Budget for Northern Ireland. It is difficult, however, to compare the two sets of figures, since there are differences in the compilation of each, reflecting varying composition of services and funding in the two jurisdictions.
'A Vision for Change', published in 2006, sets out a 10 year policy framework for Ireland's mental health services. It recommended a requirement for additional ongoing funding of €151 million over the next seven years. Since that time, significant progress has been made.
In 2012, the Mental Health budget was €711 million. In 2017, it will rise to €851.3 million, an increase of €140 million, or almost 20%, over this period. Overall, approximately 1,550 new posts have been approved for the mental health services since 2012 with approximately 1,000 posts filled to date although some existing posts in that time have also been lost due to retirements and normal attrition.
'A Vision for Change' has guided national mental health policy for the past 10 years and its term ends this year. The Department will shortly confirm the award of a contract for an external evidence expert review and analysis of international best practice in the development of mental health services, including a review of current delivery of services in Ireland, the outcome of which will inform the parameters of a review of 'A Vision for Change.'
