Robert Troy (Longford-Westmeath, Fianna Fail)
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I thank the Minister of State for taking this debate. We are raising this issue on foot of the launch of the report, Young Men and Suicide Project, which reveals the suicide rate for young men in Ireland is among the highest in the EU, and a report in The Irish Times on 3 January that the mental health of young people is at risk because of cuts.

As the Minister of State, Deputy Kathleen Lynch, will be aware, this is my fourth time to raise the issue of mental health on a Topical Issues debate in the past eight months. In July 2012, there was a joint motion of all the co-convenors of the Oireachtas mental health group which highlighted the need for the €35 million, which was ring-fenced, to be spent. At that time, the Minister of State stated that she had signed off in recent weeks on the number of posts and where those posts were needed. A further Topical Issues debate raised the issue of the vacant post of director of the National Office for Suicide Prevention for a period of 12 months. At the end of November or in early December last, I again raised the issue of the unspent €35 million in 2012 and asked for a detailed outline of when that funding would be spent, when the personnel that were promised would be put in positions and when the jobs would be taken up. I do not doubt the Minister of State's personal commitment, but there seems to be a delay and a lack of urgency in dealing with this much needed issue.

The report outlines how funding which was meant to be ring-fenced for mental health was siphoned off to shore up the overrun in the HSE budget. This is an extremely important issue. It needs a co-ordinated approach. There is no joined-up thinking. The Government abolished the career guidance posts, a decision which the head of mental health services in the HSE stated caused grave vulnerability among this section of society where we have the highest rate of suicide.

Mick Wallace (Wexford, Independent)
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I thank the Ceann Comhairle for picking the topic.

No doubt this is a complex issue. It is not black and white. I welcome the report. There is some positive stuff in it. We do not have a great deal of time, but I will pick on a couple of matters.

The early intervention in childhood, the report states, has been shown to be particularly effective. I would definitely be a strong advocate of that. There is also encouraging evidence on the use of sport in promoting positive mental health, in particular among young men. That is something that needs a little more attention.

On sport, I am forever talking about Wexford Youths. I coach players between the ages of 15 and 20 and the Minister of State would be amazed at how much a coach can help a child. He is asked to speak after the game about how he thought he played and how he thought the unit played, and he is forced to talk about himself. There is a problem in Ireland among young boys. I see these boys aged 15 and 16 years coming in to me and if one had to use one word to describe them it would have to be "insecure". They are not good at expressing themselves whereas, obviously, the girls are. There are five times more boys than girls committing suicide.

I note the Italians are far more expressive. Our suicide rates are five times those of the Italians and it is because the Italians are much better at expressing themselves. We need to be pro-active in the area of dealing directly with the fact that our boys are not good at expressing themselves at an early age.

The only other point I make is that it would be disingenuous of us to pretend that the recession does not have an impact. It is a factor. The cutbacks have had a big impact because many more are in a poor place.

On the issue of guidance councillors, I am aware from a school in Gorey where there are over 1,500 children - there are 260 in sixth year alone - that the councillors are struggling to make weekly appointments with students. The majority of their work is taken up by emergency cases as well as career advice for the sixth years, and they are not really getting to the children early enough. Their hours this year were cut, from 88 last year to 55. This is not a good idea. The Minister needs to think again about the cuts to career guidance.

Kathleen Lynch (Cork North Central, Labour)
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I appreciate being allowed to stay seated while I reply.

In response to Deputy Wallace, who has clearly read the report, in my view it is a little too late in secondary school to start on the issue of emotional well-being. As he has heard me say previously and as I will say again, in this issue language is vitally important. We are beginning on a new phase in our approach to those who feel that there is no hope out there and that they have an option of taking their lives by suicide. We need to start a new phase. The world has moved on, where people are at has moved on and we must move with that. On the last remark of Deputy Wallace, I believe that it is too late at second level to get students, in particular, young men, to express themselves.

I thank the Deputies for raising the issue. It is an issue that, I suppose, we should never tire of raising. Then again, talking about it and, as Deputy Troy stated, personal commitment, only goes so far. We really must have results, outcomes and a more concrete plan.

The increasing number of deaths by suicide over the past number of years is disturbing. Suicide is a tragedy that we are constantly working to prevent, and on which we are also working to give more support to the families affected. Dealing with the current high levels of suicide and deliberate self harm is a priority for the Government.

We cannot dismiss the economic downturn. We know it is having an effect. The figures alone tell us that. The Government is also working on this.

Earlier today, I attended the launch of the all-island report on behalf of the Men's Health Forum in Ireland, Young Men and Suicide Project, which finds that suicide is a major cause of death among males on the island of Ireland. During that launch, which was one of the most positive events I attended in recent years on suicide and self harm, I noted that the amount of people who are giving of their time, both on a voluntary and a professional basis, to get involved in this issue is quite staggering.

Another key finding is that there is no quick-fix solution to tackling the extensive and complex causes and risk factors that underpin the statistics on suicide in young men.

Reach Out, our national strategy for action on suicide prevention, recognises the youth sector as a high-risk group and sets out a number of specific actions. Consequently, the HSE's National Office for Suicide Prevention, NOSP, has developed a range of initiatives aimed specifically at supporting young people who are suicidal and also supporting their peers in recognising and responding appropriately to signs of emotional distress and suicidal thoughts. Initiatives progressed include the availability of a wide range of awareness and training programmes in the area of mental health promotion and suicide prevention, the development of a number of media campaigns, and the so-called please talk initiative, running in third level colleges, which encourages young people experiencing problems to talk to others and identifies the supports available to those in need.

Jigsaw, an innovative community-based support service for young people, is now available or in development in 11 sites throughout the country. The annual budget for suicide prevention has increased this year to more than €13 million. Some €8.1 million is administered by the NOSP and is used to fund voluntary and statutory agencies delivering services in the area of prevention, intervention, postvention and research. The remaining €5 million is available regionally to fund resource officers for suicide prevention, self-harm liaison nurses in hospital emergency departments and local suicide prevention initiatives. A special programme of measures to further advance suicide prevention in 2013 is being developed.

I have no plans at present to set up a task force, as Deputy Mattie McGrath suggested, to examine the area of suicide prevention and mental health. These functions are being carried out by the HSE and the NOSP whose role includes overseeing the implementation of Reach Out and co-ordinating suicide prevention initiatives throughout the country. The NOSP is advised and guided by an implementation group comprising individuals with considerable knowledge and expertise in the areas of suicide prevention, mental health promotion and bereavement support. I am happy that the advisory group brings an independent voice to the table. In addition, the NOSP publishes an annual report - it is currently working on it - outlining its activities and work each year, so it is fully accountable to this House. I believe that a commitment to evidence-based programmes and partnerships with a common purpose is what is required to address the issue of suicide, and this role is being carried out at present by the National Office for Suicide Prevention. The report launched today will add to that knowledge.

Robert Troy (Longford-Westmeath, Fianna Fail)
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I thank the Minister of State for her reply. She is right that early intervention is critical in all aspects of life, whether we are discussing education or mental health. The report rightly stated there is no quick fix. We need to think about having a national body. Let us consider the impact the Road Safety Authority has had in saving lives on the road. We need to consider it in a wider sense than at an individual or community basis. Mr. Rogan, the director of mental health services, says that when we have the resources we get good outcomes, but if we deny resources we get late interventions. The Minister of State has already cited the importance of early interventions.

I wish to ask the Minister of State two direct questions. The 2012 budget allocated €35 million for community mental health. Was that money spent in 2012? Have the staff, who were due to be employed in 2012, got their contracts and are they in the positions for which they were intended? Can we have a cast-iron guarantee that the €35 million, which is supposed to be ring-fenced for mental health, will not be syphoned off by any other area in the HSE and that it will be directed to where it should be directed? When we have the resources, we get good outcomes.

Kathleen Lynch (Cork North Central, Labour)
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No.

Kathleen Lynch (Cork North Central, Labour)
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Administered by-----

Mick Wallace (Wexford, Independent)
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I do not disagree with the Minister of State that early intervention is definitely the best approach. As a comparison, one day I had a chat with Mr. Antonio Conte, the manager of Juventus. I asked him why there was such a big difference between the technical ability of the Italians and players in Ireland and England. He said it was down to what the Italians do with the players between the ages of six and 12. I would argue that does not stop us working with the players in footballing terms as teenagers. From speaking with the principal, I know that the school in Gorey is under severe pressure for guidance and help in this area. In the past week alone a number of students have presented with suicidal ideation. They are really worried and without taking away from the early intervention principle, which is clearly the best, I believe schools need more help right now.

Kathleen Lynch (Cork North Central, Labour)
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So that Deputy Wallace has no misunderstanding, I am not suggesting for one minute that if there is early intervention at primary level, it should discontinue at secondary level. I see it as a continuum because we have it at third level and we are introducing it at second level also. The Minister for Education and Skills, Deputy Quinn, is launching an extensive anti-bullying campaign and we intend to extend that. I do not disagree with anything the Deputy has said. I am just saying I believe we should start considerably earlier.

I point out to Deputy Mattie McGrath that we have the national office and it is not run on a day-to-day basis by the HSE. We have very good people in it. I agree with him that we need to take this to the next level and I have already had discussions with the new director of the national office. We have now gone past the time when people did not speak about these things because they were ashamed. Now that it is out in public we need very much to have an, as it were, in your face campaign specific to areas and age groups. I do not disagree with anything the Deputy said and we now need to take a step forward. It is a different time and a different campaign. We may be dealing with people with different expectations.

There was a difficulty last year. While I do not have it off the top of my head, I will get the information for Deputy Troy. I do not have a problem with distributing information on these issues. We all want the same outcome. A substantial number of the 414 posts that were to be recruited last year have been recruited and either have contracts or have already accepted. I have been guaranteed in written form that the €70 million - the €35 million from last year and the €35 million for this year - will be spent in community mental health teams. I have sought that guarantee and have been given it. I reassure the Deputy on that.