Leo Varadkar (Dublin West, Fine Gael)
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The Mulvey report, entitled Dublin North East Inner City: Creating a Brighter Future, which was published in February 2017, contains recommendations for the social and economic regeneration of Dublin's north-east inner city. This report has been further supplemented by the north-east inner city strategic plan 2020-23. Implementation of the Mulvey report and the strategic plan is overseen and progressed by the programme implementation board. The board meets on a monthly basis and its members include representatives from relevant Departments and agencies, business and the local community. The board is assisted in its work by six subgroups composed of Departments and Government agencies and community representatives. These subgroups look at enhanced policing; maximising educational, training and employment opportunities; family well-being; enhancing community well-being and the physical landscape; substance use, misuse and inclusion health; and alignment of services.

Officials from the Department of the Taoiseach work closely with the board, the subgroups and the dedicated programme office based on Sean MacDermott Street. The chair of the programme implementation board reports to an oversight group, chaired by the Secretary General of the Department of the Taoiseach. Membership of the oversight group comprises senior civil servants across Departments and agencies who are actively engaged with the work of the north-east inner city initiative. This group ensures strong and active participation by all relevant Departments and agencies and deals with any barriers or issues highlighted by the board.

In May of this year, I appointed Mr. Jim Gavin to the role of independent chairperson of the programme implementation board. Mr. Gavin has taken up the position on a pro bonobasis and will continue the important work being undertaken by the programme implementation board in driving delivery on the objectives of the Mulvey report and the strategic implementation plan 2020-23. The Government is committed to ensuring that the programme implementation board has the necessary resources to achieve its targets and fulfil its ambition. From 2016 to 2022, inclusive, the Government provided almost €40 million to the initiative. Funding was increased last year by €1 million to provide €7.5 million for the initiative and we have committed a further €7.5 million for this year.

Réada Cronin (Kildare North, Sinn Fein)
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As the Taoiseach knows, over the past two years my party leader, Deputy McDonald, and others have been raising the alarm about the decision by the Department of Health to effectively shut down the north inner city drugs and alcohol task force. It is a mystifying move given the task force is so badly needed. Unfortunately, the Taoiseach's most recent written response on this to Deputy McDonald simply repeats a narrative that is just not accurate and with which no progress has been made over the last two years. All the while, people are suffering. The North Inner City Community Coalition wrote to the Minister of State with responsibility for the national drugs strategy last month and to the official in the Taoiseach's own Department who is responsible for this initiative. The coalition was at pains to point out that this shut-down was completely unacceptable and highlighted its members' credentials in this matter since the task force model was first developed and put in place there over 25 years ago. They are the experts with the lived experience as a community. They should be heeded. They are giving their expertise to make sure things in their community work better. Deputy McDonald and others have long outlined the wrongs and listed the failures by the Department of Health in its attitude and actions on the task force. This wrongdoing is also damaging the great work of the north-east inner city initiative and its long-term mission in the community. What is needed now is meaningful action and intervention from the Taoiseach and from his Department. It needs to be the right action. He can act to end this impasse. Will he do it?

Seán Ó Fearghaíl (Kildare South, Ceann Comhairle)
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I ask Deputy Ó Murchú to be very brief.

Ruairi Ó Murchú (Louth, Sinn Fein)
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Necessary interventions have to be taken, whether we are talking about the north-east inner city or elsewhere. Similar interventions were laid out for Drogheda following the feud. We had the Guerin report and the Drogheda implementation plan and a board was put in place. I would bring up the issue again of the family addiction support network, which is an absolutely vital cog that provides supports that no one else does for families. This is not only for the Minister of State responsible for the national drugs strategy but the Minister for Justice, who is the custodian, to a degree, of the report and the implementation plan. There is a failing around providing sustainable funding. An Garda Síochána is doing fundraisers for this organisation. The former chief superintendent of An Garda Síochána in Louth, Christy Mangan, is still on the board. This is absolutely excellent, necessary work. Sometimes the people who find themselves under the cosh as regards drug debt and intimidation will make their approaches to this organisation. We need to look at sustainable funding and there needs to be a wider conversation on it. It is necessary that the Taoiseach bring this up with the two Ministers.

Leo Varadkar (Dublin West, Fine Gael)
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I thank the Deputies. Deputy Cronin asked about the inner city drugs and alcohol task force. This ceased to function at the end of 2021 due to an impasse concerning the appointment of an independent chairperson and some other issues. The Government remains committed to tackling the drug and alcohol issues affecting the north inner city, in conjunction with community-based service providers, and has provided significant additional resources for drugs and alcohol services in the area and the Dublin north region. The Department, through the City of Dublin Youth Services board and the HSE, provides over €2.2 million annually to community-based drug and alcohol services to ensure continuity of funding to front-line services in the north inner city in the interim.

The Government is committed to establishing effective, inclusive and transparent governance of the task force in the north inner city. To this end, the Department of Health has engaged with stakeholders in the north inner city to establish effective, inclusive and transparent governance of the task force and the funding it allocates. The Department of Health has concluded consultations with members of the task force and other stakeholders on the next steps to re-establish the task force. This involves a series of meetings with public representatives, statutory and non-statutory members of the task force, front-line community and alcohol projects funded under the ambit of the task force, community and service user representatives, staff employed by the task force company and other stakeholders. I had a briefing on this from officials in the last week or so and I understand the report has been submitted for consideration to the Minister of State with responsibility for the national drugs strategy, Deputy Naughton, on the next steps to achieve this goal. Some additional clarifications were sought. These clarifications have now been received and we expect a decision from the Minister of State to be announced in the very near future. We will of course inform Deputies McDonald and Donohoe and other Deputies once that is done.

Deputy Ó Murchú raised the issue of Drogheda, and I know from Deputy O'Dowd that a lot of progress has been made on the ground since the feud and the awful events that occurred a few years ago. A lot of good things are happening. Regarding the funding of the particular organisation, I will have to come back to the Deputy on that when I have chance to speak to the relevant Ministers.