Minister for Mental Health and Older People Mary Butler has announced increased funding for mental health and older peoples’ services in Budget 2025, with record funding for a fifth year.
Minister Butler said:
“Budget 2025 sees an increase in funding for mental health services of €143.5 million bringing the budget to almost €1.5 billion. Funding for mental health has increased by 43.7% over the lifetime of this Government.
“This investment will allow us to focus on child and youth mental health, delivering targeted initiatives that support children and young people as they transition from child to adult mental health services.”
Budget 2025 will deliver a €2.9 million investment in Child and Adolescent Mental Health Services (CAMHS) initiatives, including additional staffing for CAMHS teams, expansion of CAMHS Hubs Teams, expansion of the Single Point of Access for services for children, and the development of a CAMHS Emergency Department Liaison Service.
For specialist mental health teams, Minister Butler announced the most significant programme of investment to-date with €5.7 million allocated. Significantly, the development of four new Adult attention-deficit/hyperactivity disorder (ADHD) teams will complete the rollout of this national clinical programme. Overall, 96 posts will facilitate two new teams for Eating Disorders, Early Intervention in Psychosis, and Dual Diagnosis.
The Minister also announced an expansion of Counselling in Primary Care service, saying:
“It is a priority of mine to make counselling supports accessible to more people and I am pleased with the allocation of €2 million to expand access to Counselling in Primary Care (CiPC). This will allow a particular focus on engaging with men, who as a group have been less likely to avail of counselling supports. We need men to reach out, and expanding access to this service means that appropriate supports will be there when they do.”
Under this Budget, significant funding has also been provided to open the remaining beds at the Central Mental Hospital (CMH) at Portrane which opened in 2022, through the recruitment of an additional 45 staff.
Other announced initiatives include enhancements to suicide reduction services, through the expansion of the Suicide Bereavement Liaison Service and funding for counselling for those affected by suicide and self-harm. Funding is also provided for the expansion of appropriate counselling supports for the Traveller Community.
Turning to funding for Older Persons Services, Minister Butler, said:
“I am pleased to have secured an additional €349 million for 2025. Budget 2025 is the largest ever budget for older persons services with almost €3 billion allocated to maintain and further enhance older persons services in 2025.
“This includes nearly €122 million in additional funding for home support. Home support remains a priority for this Government as it is an essential daily service for thousands of people. It is highly valued by those that avail of these support services and their families because it enables older people to live independently and with dignity in their own homes for longer. This funding will allow for 24 million hours to support 60,000 people next year.
“€72 million will also be allocated to the Fair Deal scheme to support the nursing home sector to expand services and improve quality.Providing enhanced services for people with dementia continues to be a priority for me, and I have allocated an additional €2.3 million in funding to improve access to diagnostics and supports for people with dementia.
“This funding will provide six new consultant posts for Memory Assessment and Support Services. Further funding to the Alzheimer’s Society of Ireland will see an expansion of day care in the community and in the home and will also see the total number of dementia advisers nationwide increasing to 34”.
Minister Butler also confirmed that a minimum of 20% of all new home support hours will be ringfenced for people with dementia.
Other announced funding includes an increase in the provision of transitional care funding and transitional care complex funding by €37 million in 2025 to make sure that older people receive the care they need leaving hospital.
