THE MUCH DELAYED Mental Health Bill, which is set to overhaul of Ireland’s mental health laws, has been restored as part of the new government’s legislative programme. 

The long-awaited legislation, which has suffered protracted delays for years, will strengthen regulation around people consenting to the type of treatment they receive.

It will also regulate all community Child and Adolescent Mental Health Services (CAMHS) which currently fall outside the scope of regulation set out under the 2001 Mental Health Act.

It is close to ten years since an expert group tasked with reviewing the Mental Health Act 2001 recommended 165 changes to the law, but the pace of the new legislation has been painfully slow. 

Promises were made that the legislation would be passed prior to the election, however, with the bill fell with the dissolution of the last Dáil. 

The restoration of the bill this week essentially means the legislation has been brought back to life, allowing the legislation to now proceed for consideration at Committee Stage in the Dáil in the coming weeks.

Minister for Mental Health Mary Butler said she is happy to be able to continue the work of the last number of years to progress this vitally important Bill.

“We need to enact this legislation in order to modernise mental health legislation and to put in place the necessary safeguards to ensure the rights of people with mental health difficulties are protected in the decades to come,” she said. 

The new bill will also update the involuntary admission and detention process for people with severe mental health difficulties, including a revised set of criteria for admission.

An overhauled approach to consent to treatment for involuntarily admitted people will also be legislated for. 

The bill also deals with the care and treatment of children and young people, including provisions to allow 16 and 17-year-olds to consent to or refuse mental health treatment.

The minister said the enactment of this bill has been a longstanding priority for her and the government.