John Lahart (Dublin South West, Fianna Fail) | Oireachtas source

The response was banal and irrelevant. When the funding is eventually received - it has not been received - the HSE has the final say over where the funding is allocated. There is no level of communication apparent and that irks the task forces because the HSE personnel are not the ones on the front line and they do not have the insight into where the gaps and duplications are. Requests are sent regularly to the HSE and it does not respond. I mentioned the compliance visits that were carried out last January but there is still no report. The HSE's relationship with the task forces must change dramatically from what I would regard as a paternalistic, hierarchical one to one of partnership with projects at the coalface, and other stakeholders such as local authorities and, critically, the Department of Employment Affairs and Social Protection.

There are huge compliance and governance requirements and responsibilities for board members and chairs with no resources or additional supports. How does the Minister propose to combine governance requirements with volunteer availability and time? Consistent, regular and continuous attendance at task force meetings would be a requirement. There is a real need for a co-ordinating leader to pull together all the strands that are needed to support users, local communities, families and projects themselves. Nothing is being done to address the continuing spate of suicides in west Tallaght and north Clondalkin. Could the Minister of State, Deputy Finian McGrath, ask what plans the Minister of State, Deputy Catherine Byrne, has to provide the essential connectivity that is required to make the drugs and alcohol strategy effective?

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