Government Approves Over 300 Amendments to Mental Health Bill 2024
Government approves 300+ amendments to Mental Health Bill including ECT ban for under-18s.
Minister for Mental Health Mary Butler has secured Cabinet approval for over 300 proposed amendments to the Mental Health Bill 2024, which will be debated at Seanad Committee Stage beginning on Tuesday, 2nd December 2025.
The amendments include a prohibition on electro-convulsive therapy (ECT) for children under 18, additional safeguards for capacity assessments, and strengthened treatment criteria. Two new sections will grant the Mental Health Commission powers to regulate and monitor pharmacological restraint where a person poses a risk to their own safety or the safety of others.
Mary Butler, Minister for Mental Health, said:
"The enactment of this Bill has been a longstanding priority for me and for the Government and I am pleased to now bring over 300 amendments to the Mental Health Bill at Seanad Committee Stage. I want to ensure that the Bill is as robust as possible, and I believe these amendments will make the Bill stronger. I look forward to working with colleagues in the Seanad and Dáil to progress towards enactment as soon as possible."
The Bill, which was published in July 2024 and contains over 220 sections, completed all stages in the Dáil in July 2025. The proposed amendments have been informed by continued consultation with stakeholders and other Government departments.
A further amendment will align the Bill with the Assisted Decision-Making and Capacity Act 2015, making it easier for mental health professionals to apply to court for the appointment of a Decision-Making Representative for people who are involuntarily detained and lack capacity to make certain treatment decisions.
Key amendments include provisions allowing the district court to act as a substitute decision-maker on behalf of children in cases where parental consent or refusal of treatment cannot be ascertained. For adults who are involuntarily admitted and lack capacity to consent, new amendments will require that admission or treatment be likely to "materially benefit" their condition, rather than simply "benefit" it.
Additional safeguards establish minimum time periods for capacity assessments when treatment is administered to those lacking capacity to consent.
Minister Butler concluded:
"It's vital we enact this legislation to modernise our mental health legislation and to put in place the necessary safeguards to ensure the rights of people with mental health difficulties are vindicated in the decades to come."