Catherine Byrne (Dublin South Central, Fine Gael)

I welcome this new Bill which is long overdue. It addresses a number of the issues which have been raised over the past 12 months in regard to the upsurge in head shops and the extent to which they are legally selling potentially dangerous drugs to young people in this country. While this Bill will give new powers to the Garda to close head shops and will make it an offence to sell psychoactive substances, it only scratches the surface of the drug problem in this country. I have no doubt that while the Bill will go some way towards curtailing the presence of certain drugs on the legal market, other avenues will be found by drug dealers to sell these drugs and make huge profits.

I wish to reflect on the extent of the drug problem in this country, which has brought us to today. In spite of endless promises by various Ministers and the national drugs strategy which has been in place since 2001, with a new and improved substance misuse strategy delayed until the end of the year, I regret to say that this country is slowly losing the war on drugs. While many projects and initiatives in local areas do good work, they are overshadowed by the size and strength of the illegal drug trade, and the power that drug dealers hold in many communities.

From 2002 to 2009, drugs task forces received a total of €197 million from the Government to run projects and initiatives to tackle drugs. In 2009, the Government spent €275 million across all Departments in the fight against drugs. Where has all this money gone? What good has it done for people on the street who want to find a place to live and get clean? We see no noticeable improvement on the streets or in our hospitals. There are still long waiting lists for treatment and when people come out of treatment for addiction there are little or no follow up on the services in the community.

The Health Research Boardestimates that the number of drug users in Ireland is approximately 15,000 but this is a very conservative estimate as it only reflects those who have linked in with health services. If we take into account those who have never linked into a treatment service, polydrug users, that is, those who use more than one drug, and recreational drug users, the figure would be much higher. We currently have 9,000 people in the country on methadone treatment, with no programme in place for them to become drug-free.

While some in-roads have been made by the Garda national drugs unit, drug crime is at an all-time high. According to the Central Statistics Office, drug crime in this country is up 122%. In the five years from 2004-09 it has increased at a much higher rate than any other form of criminal activity. Last year, there were 1,293 drug seizures in Irish prisons and €38.8 million worth of drugs were seized around the country. This criminal activity demands more action from Government and this Bill is only the first step.

Over the past 18 months, all in this Chamber have heard about head shops and their products which have been the focus of the media spotlight as young people across Ireland suddenly found themselves faced with more and more new outlets where they could buy drugs which have similar effects to ecstasy and cocaine at half the usual price. Many parents who were never aware that their teenagers might be experimenting with mind-altering substances were suddenly confronted with head shops on their doorstep. Parents, teachers and the Garda discovered that there was nothing they could do to put a stop to this phenomenon and the Government claimed its hands were tied. At the height of their activity, there were 14 head shops in the inner city. In May of this year there were approximately 100 shops operating nationwide. Following the banning of a number of head shop products in May, approximately 40 shops are still in operation around the country.

What many people may not realise is that head shops have been around for a long time, selling synthetic highs as well as drug paraphernalia. They were previously confined to cities and are now in operation throughout the country. However, when they began to open on street corners in rural towns communities suddenly began to take notice and ask questions. Teenagers who may never have encountered a head shop or legal highs before were suddenly presented with a golden opportunity to experiment with products such as Spice and Snow Blow.

The problem snowballed in June 2010. The Garda stated that head shops were opening at a rate of one a week. Protests by concerned parents and other action groups outside the shops made no difference and such action only helped to close the shops for a short period of time. The owners of the shops were engaged in completely reckless behaviour and had no interest in young people and the type of lives they would lead once they were introduced to drugs. While radio stations and protest groups shouted across the airwaves about what was happening on the streets the Garda's hands were tied. Many people in areas where head shops opened were in fear of their children being brought into accident and emergency departments on a nightly basis.

There are many health risks associated with psychoactive substances and according to the Health Research Board more than 90 new psychoactive substances were reported since the establishment of the European Monitoring Centre for Drugs and Drug Addiction in 1997. These products, including herbal and synthetic highs which are often in the form of plant food and bath salts, present a major public health risk. Panic set in as more and more cases of young people having severe reactions to these products dominated the headlines. We have all heard the shocking stories from doctors and parents about the serious effects these products can have. Doctors and experts in emergency medicine have spoken openly on the national airwaves, giving details of how legal highs have led to severe reactions, psychosis, suicidal tendencies, anxiety, stress and hallucinations. The list goes on.

One of the main problems facing medical professionals is that nobody knows what is actually in these drugs. People are playing Russian roulette with their lives when they consume these potentially toxic substances. The Health Research Board has stated that there is no quality control measures of these substances and in instances of adverse reactions no one is accountable.

Young people in school have been affected by this problem. I have met many teachers and principals who have had to take children out of classrooms, corridors and toilets because they have been violently sick as a result of what happened to them during previous nights when they dabbled in legal highs. Our education system is very flawed when it comes to teaching young people about drugs and how to tackle the problem. We have an antiquated system involving programmes such as Walk Tall and On My Own Two Feet. Education is the most powerful tool in the fight against drugs. If we teach our children the dangers associated with drugs and educate them about the risks involved we will go a long way towards preventing experimentation and addition.

The war on drugs continues in our towns and cities which are ravaged by drug related crime and killings. Deputy Shatter has spoken about this more eloquently than I could. Many young people have lost their lives as a result of drugs, not only through addiction but also because they have been shot dead. Some of the victims were innocent, like many in this room.

The Bill will make the sale and supply of psychoactive substances which mimic illegal drugs a criminal offence, which I welcome. Gardaí will have greater powers to enter and search premises and serve prohibition notices on shops which sell psychoactive substances. It will also enable the courts to impose fines or prison sentences. Senior gardaí will now have the power to prohibit the sale of products and issue closure orders. Gardaí and Customs and Excise officers will have full powers to search premises and seize substances. However, if a prohibition notice or a closure order can only be issued by an officer at superintendent rank or higher, I fear unnecessary delays could result and, for this reason, Garda inspectors should also have these powers.

It is regrettable that the Government has been so slow to introduce appropriate legislation in this area. It seems to react only when it is backed into a corner. I have concerns about the sale of these substances over the Internet and door-to-door. Like Deputy Shatter, I would like the Bill to include further initiatives in this regard.

Our communities are being held to ransom by drugs and drug dealers. Almost every corner of Ireland has been infiltrated by drugs and every community has its own tragic story to tell. Drugs have destroyed lives and deprived many young people of a bright future. This is a sad reflection of what our society has become and we must do everything in our power to bring change for this and future generations. The Minister has my full support on this Bill.

See this speech in context