Bertie Ahern (Dublin Central, Fianna Fail)

The Government set up the Office of the Minister for Children under the Minister of State with responsibility for children, Deputy Brian Lenihan, to deal with all issues affecting children in an increasingly complicated world. The issues of yesterday reinforce that point. I accept Deputy Kenny's point and, if the boards of management and the schools do not object, I have no difficulties with voluntary random drug-testing. I said that two weeks ago and have asked people to examine it since then.

We should encourage what is positive. When one sees a report that has so many positive aspects about children, one can see people going through it to find something negative and the headline focuses on the 40% of teenagers who have experimented with drugs. Some children said they had sampled drugs but this leads to the perception that our society is drug-ridden and booze-ridden and that is unfair to hundreds of thousands of young people who listen to good parents, participate in active life and try to do their best. The story from the report should have been that our children are the second most active in the world, according to the WHO, but that aspect is not worth a candle according to some people. That is wrong.

Resources for addiction counselling, detoxification programmes and methadone treatment centres are important as are the resources provided for young people's facilities funds across a range of areas and in regional drug teams. Ultimately, helping involves having good youth workers and community workers and providing resources for scout halls and dens and for girl guides to keep people away from drugs. The absence of activity and of having something to do, leads people to drift to street corners, to the ghettoblasters and into drugs. Activity is the solution to the problem. Sufficient research exists to prove that. We must promote resources for sport and recreation in the widest sense. It does not matter if it is tiddlywinks or sophisticated field sport — each one is helpful. This is being successfully done and we will continue to do it. I support it and have provided considerable resources to it.

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