Press Release: Wednesday 9 July
Minister for Mental Health Mary Butler T.D. Progresses Mental Health Bill 2024 Through All Stages in Dáil Éireann
Minister for Mental Health Mary Butler T.D. today progressed the Mental Health Bill through all stages in Dáil Éireann, with Report and Final Stages concluding this evening, Wednesday 9 July 2025. The Bill will now proceed to Seanad Éireann in the autumn, a critical next step before enactment.
Speaking this evening, Minister Butler said:
“I am very pleased that the Mental Health Bill 2024 has successfully completed Report and Final Stages in the Dáil. This marks a pivotal moment in modernising our mental health legislation and safeguarding the rights of those accessing services.
“I was surprised that some of the amendments put forward by the opposition at Committee Stage and again at Report Stage would have represented a regressive approach rather than a human-rights affirming and person-centred approach.
“I was particularly disappointed by uninformed comments made at the end of the debate which suggested the Bill would not provide for the regulation of CAMHS, when in fact the Bill explicitly provides for the regulation of community mental health services – including CAMHS – by the Mental Health Commission.”
First published in July 2024, the Bill has progressed through Second Stage last September, Committee Stage in June 2025, and now Report and Final Stages, reflecting extensive engagement and refinement throughout the process.
Highlights of the Bill – the most comprehensive overhaul of Mental Health Laws in 20 years – include:
- Revised involuntary admission and detention process, ensuring we align and update our laws with international human-rights standards.
- Enhanced consent provisions, meaning we will overhaul treatment consent for involuntarily admitted individuals, including 16- and 17-year-olds.
- Expanded regulatory oversight as the Mental Health Commission will oversee all community mental health services, including Child and Adolescent Mental Health Services (CAMHS).
Minister Butler paid tribute to stakeholders who have engaged with the Bill in bringing this legislation to this point:
“My sincere thanks to the officials in my Department who have worked tirelessly to progress the Mental Health Bill to this stage. I also want to thank the HSE, Mental Health Commission, people with lived and living experience and their families, and the many advocacy groups whose engagement and input has been invaluable. Each stage throughout the Dáil has strengthened this legislation.”
The Bill will resume its legislative journey in the autumn session in Seanad Éireann. Once passed, commencement dates and implementation frameworks, particularly around CAMHS regulation and authorised officers, will be finalised.
Minister Butler concluded:
“This Bill reaffirms our commitment to a rights-based, person-centred mental health system. Completion of the legislation in Dáil Éireann brings us closer to enacting the strongest protections for those who rely on mental health services for decades to come.”