Charles Flanagan (Laois-Offaly, Fine Gael)
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Question 38: To ask the Minister for Justice, Equality and Law Reform the action he proposes to take in respect of the significant rise in controlled drug offences in the most recent crime figures from the Central Statistics Office; and if he will make a statement on the matter. [7751/09]

Pat Rabbitte (Dublin South West, Labour)
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Question 39: To ask the Minister for Justice, Equality and Law Reform the quantity and value of seizures of heroin, cocaine, cannabis, and other drugs here during 2007, 2008 and to date in 2009; the proportion of the overall flow of drugs into Ireland which is believed to be represented by these seizures; the new initiatives he is planning to control the flow of illegal drugs into Ireland; and if he will make a statement on the matter. [7754/09]

Dermot Ahern (Louth, Fianna Fail)
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I propose to take Questions Nos. 38 and 39 together.

The following tabular statement provides the latest available information on drug seizures for 2007 and 2008. It shows seizures of a total of €167.5 million in 2007 and in excess of €200 million in 2008. Given the covert nature of the activity, it is not possible to give a reliable estimate of the proportion of drugs coming into the country that these figures represent. While it is true that some international studies attempt to estimate the proportion of overall drugs seized to production, it is not a reliable guide to the situation in any particular country. In particular, such rule of thumb figures cannot reflect increased enforcement levels in a country.

The most recent CSO figures referred to by Deputy Flanagan show an increase of 25.4% in the overall total of drugs offences recorded for 2008 in comparison with 2007. It is important to emphasise that, of their nature, drug offences are only recorded as a result of enforcement activity. For example, possession of drugs for supply is only recorded as an offence where the law enforcement agencies have detected the offence and pursued it. The statistics in question, therefore, represent increased levels of enforcement and should lead to commendation of the efforts of those involved.

The House will be aware from media reports and elsewhere of the relentless action being taken, especially by An Garda Síochána, in pursuing the activities of drugs gangs and the considerable success it has had through making major seizures and arrests. These successes are inevitably reflected in the recording of an increased number of drug offences, but it would be a pity if, through some misunderstanding or misinterpretation of the statistics, this was to be counted as a failure rather than a success of its enforcement strategies.

That is not in any way to underestimate the extent of the problem of drug abuse and the need to devote considerable resources to tackle it, which is exactly what is being done. Through ongoing specific initiatives and intelligence-led operations, An Garda Síochána continues to seize substantial quantities of illegal drugs and identify those involved in the importation, distribution, sale and supply of illegal drugs.

At present some 379 members of the force are specifically attached to the divisional drug units and 60 gardaí are attached to the national drugs unit. They, in turn, are supported by the National Bureau of Criminal Investigation, the organised crime unit and the Criminal Assets Bureau. I have secured increased funding of 15% for CAB this year. The Garda works closely with the Customs and Excise and the Naval Service under the umbrella of the joint task force on drugs as well as with international colleagues.

Among recent and ongoing initiatives are the establishment of the organised crime unit on a permanent footing, our involvement in the establishment and operation of the Maritime Analysis and Operations Centre in Lisbon, strengthened provisions in the Criminal Justice Acts 2006 and 2007 and the ringfencing of €21 million this year for Operation Anvil, which represents an increase on last year. I am confident the legislation that I will introduce shortly dealing with surveillance will be especially valuable in tackling drugs gangs.

Members of the House will accept that we cannot tackle the problem of drug misuse through law enforcement measures alone. We must tackle the demand for drugs and, in this context, I can assure the House that my Department, and all the agencies under its aegis, are co-operating fully in the development of the national drugs strategy for the period 2009 to 2016, which is being drawn up by my colleague the Minister of State at the Department of Community, Rural and Gaeltacht Affairs, Deputy John Curran.

The following table provides details of the quantities and estimated street value of the most significant drugs analysed by the Forensic Science Laboratory for 2007 and the provisional figures for 2008, up to and including 25 November 2008.

Charles Flanagan (Laois-Offaly, Fine Gael)
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The Minister has referred to measuring the success or failure of Government policy to deal with drugs. I suggest the policy, involving not only his Department but also the Department of Education and Science, the Department of Health and Children and the national drugs strategy has been a total failure. In the past four years there has been an increase in the number of drug offences recorded in the order of 75% and an increase in the number of offences in the matter of selling and supplying of drugs in the order of 60%. This represents a significant problem. Meanwhile, there is a cut in Garda overtime in the order of in excess of €20 million. Undoubtedly, that will result in a reduction in the availability of frontline services. For example, the dial-a-drug helpline which was available on a confidential basis for people to report activities of drug dealing to the Garda has been closed down. The service is no more simply because the funding is not available.

The Minister referred to the maritime centre in Lisbon, but we can no longer rely on the EU to solve our drugs problem. The customs service in our island nation polices 4,300 km of coastline, but there is only one cutter for patrol. The Minister's colleague, Deputy Conor Lenihan, in reply to a parliamentary question last week stated that it was not possible to be precise about the timing of the second boat. That is long since promised, but has not been delivered.

The south-west coast is a renowned drugs gateway. We read about it all the time, but no effort is made to secure our coast line. What is being done to ensure the supply of drugs is cut off at the point of entry to the State, namely, our ports and coasts?

Dermot Ahern (Louth, Fianna Fail)
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I accept the drugs issue is a significant problem in the country. The Deputy suggested that because there is a dramatic increase in drug offences brought to court amounting to 25% year on year, there is an increased problem. Nevertheless, the Deputy should commend the Garda, the Navy, the Revenue and the Customs and Excise which has primary responsibility in this regard for the job well done. However, we are not complacent and we must continue our efforts.

Charles Flanagan (Laois-Offaly, Fine Gael)
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What is recorded is the tip of the iceberg.

Dermot Ahern (Louth, Fianna Fail)
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The Deputy made a political charge relating to Garda overtime. The fact is the Government will oversee an increase in the number of gardaí this year from 14,200 at the beginning of the year to 14,900 at the end of the year. In effect, by the end of 2009 we will reach the level of Garda numbers that the Deputy, in his famous endless contract, promised in the general election in 2007.

Charles Flanagan (Laois-Offaly, Fine Gael)
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There are less man hours, the Minister can forget about that.

Dermot Ahern (Louth, Fianna Fail)
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In the general election of 2007 the Deputy said that he would reach the level of 15,000 by 2012. We will reach that level three years earlier so he need not make political charges in that regard.

Charles Flanagan (Laois-Offaly, Fine Gael)
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It is a justified charge. The Minister is preventing them from entering Templemore now. He was there recently.

Brendan Howlin (Wexford, Labour)
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Please allow the Minister to finish.

Dermot Ahern (Louth, Fianna Fail)
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I refer again to the point in respect of increased activities by the Garda and the increased success in respect of prosecutions brought. Let us extend the logic in the argument of the Deputy to its conclusion. The implication is that the greater the number of successful offences charged and convicted, the greater the problem. However, the fact is——

Charles Flanagan (Laois-Offaly, Fine Gael)
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It is the same with seizures, which are up 10%.

Dermot Ahern (Louth, Fianna Fail)
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According to the Deputy's logic if there were no seizures and no offences there would be no drugs in the country. That is not the case.

Charles Flanagan (Laois-Offaly, Fine Gael)
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No, the seizures amount to 10%.

Dermot Ahern (Louth, Fianna Fail)
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The Deputy makes political charges relating to it. The reality is the Deputy's leader called for more cutbacks today.

Charles Flanagan (Laois-Offaly, Fine Gael)
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They are justified charges.

Dermot Ahern (Louth, Fianna Fail)
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We are putting extra gardaí into the system to prosecute these offences.

Brendan Howlin (Wexford, Labour)
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I call Deputy Rabbitte.

Pat Rabbitte (Dublin South West, Labour)
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I hope the Leas-Cheann Comhairle can assure me the Minister will not walk out today. I refer to this measure of success or failure. Surely, the only measure of success or failure is the extent to which communities throughout the country are polluted by illicit drugs. Surely, the only measure of success or failure is the extent of criminality, killings and petty vandalism that is accompanied by the drugs menace. Will the Minister indicate to the House three actions he intends to take in the coming year to address the endemic nature of the drugs crisis in our midst?

Dermot Ahern (Louth, Fianna Fail)
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I refer the Deputy to the position in respect of increased resources. There will be extra dog units available to the Revenue Commissioners and to the Customs and Excise. There will be an increase of 379 gardaí entering divisional drugs units, representing a dramatic increase from recent years. These are new initiatives. A greater number of dog detection teams will be provided. Extra X-ray equipment is available to the Revenue Commissioners and the Customs and Excise at all major ports and airports. The level of maritime resources will be increased by the introduction of a second cutter sometime later this year. The Navy will be part of the overall process. It is not simply a matter of enforcement, although that has been very successful.

The initiative undertaken during my time as Minister for Foreign Affairs and now in respect of our accession to the Maritime Analysis and Operations Centre-Narcotics, MAOC-N, in Lisbon has been successful. I read a comment in the newspapers recently about its success. For a relatively small sum of money this country is part of an intelligence gathering centre in Lisbon and we have had success with several significant seizures.

Aside from enforcement, education and prevention, the treatment and rehabilitation of persons involved with drugs are important. We worked with other agencies and Departments and the Minister of State at the Department of Community, Rural and Gaeltacht Affairs, Deputy John Curran, to put together a new national drugs strategy for the period 2009 to 2012.

Charles Flanagan (Laois-Offaly, Fine Gael)
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What action is the Department of Justice, Equality and Law Reform taking to deal with the increasing number of drug-related deaths? Will the Minister join me in expressing shock at the attempt by a 13 year old boy to sell illegal drugs to a member of the Garda Síochána? There is a serious problem and very little being done to solve it.

Dermot Ahern (Louth, Fianna Fail)
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We all abhor such incidents. That is why we are and have been beefing up our enforcement agencies.

Charles Flanagan (Laois-Offaly, Fine Gael)
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The Minister is withdrawing gardaí.

Dermot Ahern (Louth, Fianna Fail)
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Our record is second to none. Instead of criticising the level of resources the Deputy should encourage——

Charles Flanagan (Laois-Offaly, Fine Gael)
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What is the Minister doing?

Dermot Ahern (Louth, Fianna Fail)
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The Deputy should commend the Garda and the agencies involved for being more successful than ever before in making seizures. The figures speak for themselves, even though the Deputy tries to twist them to show that the situation is getting worse. With enforcement——

Charles Flanagan (Laois-Offaly, Fine Gael)
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Is it getting better?

Dermot Ahern (Louth, Fianna Fail)
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With proper resources, enforcement is getting better. That is not the entire——

Charles Flanagan (Laois-Offaly, Fine Gael)
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The Minister lives in the same world as the Tánaiste.

Dermot Ahern (Louth, Fianna Fail)
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One cannot gauge the success or otherwise of the fight on drugs purely and simply by enforcement. We have to do away with the demand also.

Pat Rabbitte (Dublin South West, Labour)
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Praise for the Garda Síochána and the other agencies to which the Minister refers ought not be restricted to his side of the House. We on this side commend their work too. Is it not a fact that, according to Garda figures, only 10% of the drugs that come through or into this jurisdiction are seized? One cannot point to the figures as manifest evidence of progress. They are as likely to be evidence of an increased throughput of drugs, into and through this jurisdiction. How many new dog units are in place and where are they available? Can we go on tolerating the fact that young lives are being ravaged in every town, village and urban area because of the easy availability of drugs? They are ravaging communities, destroying young people's lives and out of control. The voluntary agencies believe the Government no longer supports, philosophically or financially, the partnership built up in the early days between the community and State sectors.

Dermot Ahern (Louth, Fianna Fail)
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I do not accept that. The good relationship has been clearly demonstrated by the ever increasing level of resources used, until this year, in the implementation of the old national drug strategy. The Minister of State with responsibility for the strategy, Deputy Curran, can supply the figures separately. They speak for themselves. It is not the case that the 10% seizure rate equates to 10% of the overall level of production.

Pat Rabbitte (Dublin South West, Labour)
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That is the Garda figure.

Dermot Ahern (Louth, Fianna Fail)
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It is not the case. If the Deputy looks at the figures——

Pat Rabbitte (Dublin South West, Labour)
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It is in the answers to several parliamentary questions tabled before the Minister took office. Those were the answers we received. The word processor indicated a figure of 10% before the Minister came along.

Dermot Ahern (Louth, Fianna Fail)
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I did not interrupt the Deputy. He should please let me speak.

Charles Flanagan (Laois-Offaly, Fine Gael)
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Are those the national or international figures?

Dermot Ahern (Louth, Fianna Fail)
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Deputy Rabbitte was sniggering even before I answered the question.

Pat Rabbitte (Dublin South West, Labour)
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I was not sniggering.

Dermot Ahern (Louth, Fianna Fail)
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The Deputy did snigger earlier.

Pat Rabbitte (Dublin South West, Labour)
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I was laughing at the Minister's audacity in accusing this side of House of engaging in partisan politics.

Dermot Ahern (Louth, Fianna Fail)
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The figures from the authoritative office dealing with drugs worldwide, the UN Office for Drugs and Crime, show that in respect of seizures, cocaine production accounts for a figure of 44%; cannabis, 28%——

Charles Flanagan (Laois-Offaly, Fine Gael)
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Are those the figures for here? That is not true.

Dermot Ahern (Louth, Fianna Fail)
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These are worldwide figures.

Charles Flanagan (Laois-Offaly, Fine Gael)
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We are talking about Ireland.

Dermot Ahern (Louth, Fianna Fail)
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Opium accounts for a total of 25%; amphetamines, 7% and ecstacy, 4.7%. They are the international seizure figures.

Charles Flanagan (Laois-Offaly, Fine Gael)
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Worldwide figures have no bearing on what happens along the 4,000 km of unguarded coastline here.

Pat Rabbitte (Dublin South West, Labour)
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We want the Irish figures.

Dermot Ahern (Louth, Fianna Fail)
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A figure of 10% is a rule of thumb, from the top of someone's head or drawn up on the back of an envelope, without any real research.

Pat Rabbitte (Dublin South West, Labour)
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Those are the figures given by the Minister's predecessors in the past 15 years.