Noel Ahern (Dublin North West, Fianna Fail)

The report of the steering group on the mid-term review of the national drugs strategy was published in June of 2005. The report was the culmination of a comprehensive review, which included extensive consultation with Departments, agencies and the public.

The review was overseen by a steering group, chaired by my Department and made up of representatives of the relevant Departments and agencies as well as the community and voluntary sectors. Some assistance was provided by external consultants. The review sought to assess the impact and direction of the strategy at its mid-point and the steering group concentrated on identifying beneficial adjustments to the strategy and highlighting priorities for the second phase up to 2008.

The steering group found that the current aims and objectives of the drugs strategy are fundamentally sound. It confirmed that there have been encouraging signs of progress since 2001, when the strategy was first launched, suggesting that our current approach to tackling the drug problem is proving to be effective.

However, the review highlights the need to refocus priorities and accelerate the roll-out and implementation of various key actions in the remaining period of the strategy up to 2008. In this context, a number of new actions and amendments to others were identified. These changes have strengthened the strategy and will enable it to deliver its aims more effectively.

Ten of the strategy's 100 existing actions were replaced, a further seven were amended and eight new actions, which aim to address issues such as family support and rehabilitation, were added. In terms of progress, the review found that 49 of the original 100 actions outlined in the strategy are completed or are of an ongoing nature, progress was ongoing on a further 45 and there were six actions on which considerable progress has still to be made.

Rehabilitation was identified as an issue that needed to be developed. It was agreed that rehabilitation should become the fifth pillar of the strategy and that a working group be established to develop a strategy for the provision of integrated rehabilitation services.

I established the rehabilitation working group, which includes representatives from a range of Departments and agencies involved in delivering rehabilitation services as well as the national drugs strategy team, the national advisory committee on drugs and representatives from the community and voluntary sectors. The report of the working group will be available in the coming months.

Additional information not given on the floor of the House.

All the actions in the national drugs strategy are progressing with significant input and co-operation from other Departments and agencies, such as the Health Service Executive, the Garda Síochána, the customs service of the Revenue Commissioners, the Department of Education and Science, the Department of Justice, Equality and Law Reform, the Irish Prison Service and FÁS, as well as the community and voluntary sector.

I am confident that the current consensus on the direction of the national drugs strategy will remain and that we will continue to respond in a focused way as the situation evolves.

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