Dominic Hannigan (Labour)

I welcome the Minister of State, Deputy Pat Carey, to the House. I am pleased to have a chance to debate this issue. Many Senators have concentrated on the supply of drugs but I want to focus on demand. We can make a fundamental difference by working to reduce the demand for drugs.

The Minister of State was in the House a few weeks ago, on 17 October, for a debate on the national drugs strategy. I was one of nine Senators who contributed to the discussion. I spoke about drug abuse and the increasing number of hard drug users in this country. I highlighted the dangers of not implementing the national drugs strategy sooner rather than later. Some Senators on the other side of the House lauded the Government's achievements in this area, which may have been somewhat premature in light of recent events. During the debate, I also mentioned the wide availability of cocaine in Ireland.

I am pleased we have an opportunity this evening to talk about alcohol abuse, which is increasing among adults and younger people. It is not uncommon to see very young teenagers going around with beer in their hands. We need better education about drug abuse and the effects of alcohol abuse. We need better treatment of drug and alcohol abusers. More resources need to be used to prevent drug abuse. We should provide additional community facilities, for example. If people have more options, they will be less likely to start taking drugs.

Cocaine is not a new drug. It has been around for generations. It has been glamorised by many people. Some Senators will be familiar with the Eric Clapton song, "Cocaine", from the 1970s. While people have recently started to understand the impact cocaine abuse can have, we need to do more to inform people about its dangers. We need to talk about the side-effects of cocaine use. We do not hear much about the downside of excessive cocaine use such as nosebleeds, hangovers and paranoia. It is expensive to maintain a cocaine habit. These are just some of the impacts felt by cocaine abusers. Other Senators have spoken about the impact of cocaine on society as a whole.

We need to explode the myth that cocaine is a sexy drug, because it is not. It should not be glamorised. We need better education. Information should be made available outside nightclubs and in schools. We should talk about the dangerous effects of dodgy ecstasy tablets and the drug known as "special k". These recreational drugs have had a serious impact on the lives of people I know. We need to raise awareness of the dangers and downsides of drugs. If we ensure education is at the core of our drugs policy, we will help to reduce peer pressure.

Better treatment facilities are needed. It is a disgrace that many drug addicts use drugs like heroin for the first time when they go to prison. I recently heard that 50% of heroin users in our prisons had not taken heroin before they were sent to jail. A review of the Whitaker report on the reform of prisons, which was published more than 20 years ago, was undertaken recently. We need to implement the recommendations of the report so that people are sent to prison to be rehabilitated rather than to get addicted to drugs.

As a society, we need to provide people with alternatives to getting stoned or drunk at weekends. More facilities are needed locally so that people who are growing up can choose from a broader range of activities. There has been substantial growth over the past ten years in many towns and villages in the peri-urban areas of the Dublin region. Very few facilities have been developed in these new estates. I am sure the Minister of State has personal experience of seeing young people hanging around late on Thursday, Friday and Saturday nights with nothing to do except drink or take drugs. No facilities are in place to offer alternative activities to such people. There are more golf clubs than playgrounds in Ireland. We need to put facilities in place to give children and young people an alternative to taking drugs in the first instance. There are no community centres or young people's facilities in many areas. There are no outlets where youth activities can be organised. In the absence of such facilities, is it any wonder that we have ended up with a drug problem?

I support the motion before the House. We need to direct more resources to educating people about the impact of the misuse of drugs on drug users, their families and society as a whole. Better treatment facilities are needed, as I have said. More social facilities need to be provided in communities to offer people an alternative to getting involved in drugs.