I’ve been out on the election trail with Kieran O’Donnell and I think he has an excellent chance of unseating Tim O’Malley. A few people have asked my what I have against him so I’ve checked a few sources and I’d like to share this with you.

Essentially; Tim O’Malley, junior minister for health suggests that depression isn’t an illness – people are just unhappy!

From Irish Medical News

“There’s a very strong view with a lot of people that depression and mental illness is not a medical condition, that it’s part of life’s events that people get depressed or get unhappy. Years ago people were unhappy, they weren’t depressed, they weren’t given the name depressed.”

He accused psychiatrists of making waiting lists longer to make themselves feel important on Primetime. Calls for his resignation were ignored.

And he accuses Dan Neville of “playing politics” with the issue of suicide. I’ve heard him speak on the issue a few times in person and
there is not a shred of doubt in my mind that this is something he really, really cares about and will work for as long as possible.

He also referred to gay people as not being of a “normal disposition” during an interview on Newstalk in November ‘06 according to Wikipedia and some other sources.

He gets up Sarah’s nose too:
http://www.sarahcarey.ie/2006/10/10/tim-omalley-is-a-dick/
http://www.sarahcarey.ie/2006/12/06/tim-omalley-is-a-dick-2/

And finally, the Fine Gael/Labour agreed policy on mental health is here: REACHING RECOVERY – AGREED AGENDA ON MENTAL HEALTH