The lengthy bill now has 202 sections — up from the 197 sections announced last week due to “formatting/drafting changes made during the quality assurance process”.

It provides for an updated involuntary admission and detention process for people with severe mental health difficulties, including a revised set of criteria for admission, as well as an overhauled approach to consent to treatment for involuntarily admitted people.

It also expands the Mental Health Commission’s regulatory function to include all community mental health residences and services, including all community CAMHS.

The changes will bring mental health law into “closer alignment” with the principles of the Assisted Decision-Making (Capacity) Acts 2015 and 2022, the Department of Health has said.

Mary Butler, minister for mental health and older people, said: “I am delighted to publish this important piece of legislation today.

“The publication of the bill is an important milestone, and I am happy to deliver on my commitment to ready the bill for the next steps in the legislative process. Today’s publication means that the bill will be ready for introduction to the Oireachtas as soon as possible on the return of the Dáil in September.

“The bill will replace the 2001 Act, introducing a more modern, person-centred approach to mental health legislation and will put in place a more robust framework in which our mental health services will be delivered and regulated. Importantly, the bill introduces the regulation of community mental health services, including CAMHS, for the first time.”

She added: “The bill contains numerous important measures, which will have a tangible beneficial impact on individuals accessing mental health services, empowering them to play a more active role in making decisions about their care and treatment.

“The bill is lengthy and complex, containing 202 sections, and I look forward to guiding it through the legislative process and to bringing it to committee stage in the Autumn.”