Mark Ward
Ceist:
247. Deputy Mark Ward asked the Minister for Justice if he will provide an update on the mental health crisis de-escalation team in Limerick; the number of positions that are filled; the number of positions left to be filled; the expected opening of the service; and if he will make a statement on the matter. [9283/23]
Amharc ar fhreagra
I have requested the information sought by the Deputy, however, this information was not available in time. I will write to the Deputy once the information is to hand.
The following deferred reply was received under Standing Order 51.
I refer to Parliamentary Question No. 247 of 23 February 2023 where you sought: “To ask the Minister for Justice if he will provide an update on the mental health crisis de-escalation team in Limerick; the number of positions that are filled; the number of positions left to be filled; the expected opening of the service; and if he will make a statement on the matter.”
As you will recall, the information you requested was not available at the time, and I undertook to contact you again once the information was to hand.
As you are aware, decisions in relation to the provision, allocation and management of Garda resources are matters for the Garda Commissioner. As Minister, I have no role in such matters.
The Garda authorities inform me that the Community Access Support Teams (CAST) project proposal, in collaboration with the HSE, was approved by the Garda Executive on 27 September 2022.
I was further informed that a Project Initiation Document was approved at a CAST Joint Steering Committee meeting on 16 December 2022. Additionally, key deliverables of the project and responsibilities were discussed, and the realignment of the governance of the project was agreed. This change now sees the Joint Steering Committee becoming a Strategic Forum, with the Implementation Working Group and various work streams reporting to them on a periodic basis.
The following 7 work streams have been identified to progress the implementation:
• Training
• Innovation
• Evaluation
• Recruitment & Logistics
• Governance
• Stakeholder Engagement & Communications
The project requirements, which were approved by the Garda Executive, are currently being progressed and include: additional resources, vehicles, uniform, IT and logistics, and accommodation.
The HSE are currently preparing competitions for three posts.
I hope that this information is of assistance.
