Dr. Denis O'Driscoll:

It is a very broad question. The drugs that concern me, and I am sure my GP colleagues would concur, are the gabapentinoids such as Lyrica and Neurontin. These seem to have gained a huge place in the marketplace as a result of, as the Deputy said, leakage. They have also started to show in our national drug-related death index of overdose and overdose-related deaths. If you look at how we legalised or regulated benzodiazepines when they were re-regulated to CD4 part one, it did slow down the whole leakage piece. There is a role to play in regulating certain compounds in order to prevent that leakage. There are always ways and means of getting these drugs, regardless of getting them through prescribing or dispensing routes. There are other routes through which people are getting them such as Internet portals, etc.

To go back to the primary question on benzodiazepines, when CD4 part one was brought in there was also a piece brought in from the PCRS whereby they monitor the benzodiazepine prescribing patterns of GPs. This has helped with regard to benzodiazepines coming through the legal channels.