Martin Ferris (Kerry North-West Limerick, Sinn Fein) | Oireachtas source

I thank the Minister for his presentation and his detailed response to the 12 questions that were put to him by the Cathaoirleach. It is regrettable that a Northern Minister is not here, or even that a unit representation is not here. This is an ongoing thing. It is for our mutual benefit, including the benefit of our constituents, that we are seeking to take advantage of any type of co-operation that is necessary. Unfortunately, not everyone is represented.

I welcome the extent of North-South co-operation in a number of areas, as outlined by the Minister. It is to be welcomed and supported. I hope it will continue and expand. The Minister spoke about the price of medicine and drugs and the problems in dealing with that. He mentioned a €500 million EU structure that offers some possibilities for the future. It is something that all of us would like to see. The cost of medicine and drugs is quite crippling for many people, especially those who do not have medical cards.

I welcome the co-operation with regard to alcohol abuse, which is ingrained in our society.

From a sporting perspective, for example, I doubt that there are many clubs that do not receive sponsorship or support from local pubs and so forth. They have no other choice, as the situation has changed so much in the past 25 or 30 years such that football, soccer, hurling and boxing clubs, for example, have a dependency on publicans and the like for support. Perhaps some State funding for clubs, in conjunction with funding for the national sports bodies, should be considered.

Regarding below-cost selling, I do not believe minimum pricing will resolve the issue. What is required is a form of excise duty on products which could then be used to fund programmes of education and so forth to help to address the problem, particularly as it relates to alcoholism which is ingrained in our society. Perhaps the Minister might respond to this suggestion.

One of the most disturbing aspects is suicide and the lack of suicide prevention measures. It is ravaging communities, North and South. On Monday night I attended the funeral of a 29 year old constituent who had taken his own life, having been released from a psychiatric ward the previous day. Before coming to Dublin on Tuesday, I attended the funeral of an 83 year old who had taken his own life. These give an indication of the size of the problem. Every month I attend the funeral of someone who has taken his or her own life. It is a major problem, much of which is down to the way we treat our fellow human beings and how some people grow up with a sense of inequality and hopelessness. I was involved with a number of local projects that dealt with this issue, particularly as it affected young people. On reflection, though, we approached it in the wrong way. There was a glorification of the person who had taken his or her life. Young people said on Facebook that he or she was a lovely person and so forth. That was counterproductive. We need an all-island strategy to deal with the issue. It will probably be done through education programmes in schools and by making facilities available for those who are suffering from depression. If one drives down the Falls Road in Belfast, one will see public offices that were there to help people who were suffering from depression and had suicidal tendencies. We must do something, as this is one of the most pressing issues facing young people in particular, but they are not the only ones affected. Once, it was practically unheard of for a young woman to take this option. Will the Minister respond to this point?

I thank the Minister for his presentation. We should utilise our abilities in an all-island context. This is a small island with 6 million people and the same issues affect everyone across it. Putting services in place in a co-operative way - from the point of view of price and in terms of having proper state-of-the-art facilities available - makes common sense and should be pursued and I hope it will be.