Noel Ahern (Dublin North West, Fianna Fail)

I do not know where the question was in all that, but I sincerely hope I am not misrepresenting anything. It was certainly not my intention. We talked about the 14 local drugs task forces. One cannot have round three while the pilot project is on round two. Many of the projects under round two that might have been all right two or three years ago have not been in place all that long. They have certainly not been evaluated or mainstreamed. There must be some sense and logic in this. One cannot have a round three when much of round two is still at a pilot stage.

Most people in the community sector with whom I deal regard €1 million as substantial, and that was what was originally envisaged. Government funding is not just about the emerging needs fund. As I said, approximately €55 million is being spent that would have started at local drugs task force level. The health services would spend that and more, never mind education or justice. If one added them all up, one would find that considerably more than €150 million is being spent on the fight against drugs. It may not be fair to include all those matters, but it is probably €55 million of what started at local drugs task force level, with approximately 600 projects. I do not know what is required immediately, since many of the applications arrived only at the end of November. The team is assessing them.

See this speech in context