Sinn Féin spokesperson on Mental Health, Mark Ward TD, has called out the government for playing fantasy mental health budgets with the public.

Deputy Ward was speaking following the launch of Budget 2025, which brought to an end the government’s attempt to address the crisis in mental health care provision.

Teachta Ward said:

“I am not going to waste time playing fantasy mental health budgets, it’s too serious for this.

“So, let me lay it bare. This is the government’s legacy after five years.

“When they took office in 2020, there were 2,115 children waiting on a first-time appointment with CAMHS.

“There are now 3681 children. That’s a 74% increase under their watch.

“Five years ago, there were 223 children left languishing over a year on waiting lists for CAMHS.

“Today there are 504 children waiting. That’s an increase of 126% under their watch.

“We had damning reports into CAMHS by Maskey and the Mental Health Commission.

“These reported children misdiagnosed, mistreated, and lost in the system.

“There were 72 CAMHS inpatient beds operational five years ago. This now stands at 51.

“There were only three adult inpatient beds for eating disorders in the state when they took office.

“And guess what, here we are five years later and there are still only three beds.

“In 2020, we had a scandalous 9689 children on waiting lists for psychology

“Fast forward to 2024, and we now have a whopping 18,368 children waiting.

“This is the legacy of Minister Butler and her government.

“It is a legacy of heartbreak and a legacy of children being denied every opportunity to reach their full potential.

“In Sinn Fein’s Mental Health Action plan, we have the solutions to solve the problems that Fine Gael and Fianna Fáil caused in Mental Health.

“We have a fully costed five-year strategy that would give hope to people in need by transforming our services.

“Sinn Féin will be ready if given the opportunity in the upcoming election because people deserve better than what we have been given from this government.”