Áine Brady (Kildare North, Fianna Fail)

I would like to respond to Senator Buttimer on this matter on behalf of my colleague, the Minister of State at the Department of Community, Rural and Gaeltacht Affairs, Deputy Curran.

Under the national drugs strategy, each of the 14 local drugs task forces, including the one in Cork, has in place an action plan to tackle drugs misuse in its area based on its own identified priorities. Funding for the Cork local drugs task force in 2009 is over €1,760,000. There is also mainstreamed funding available through the HSE and the Department of Justice, Equality and Law Reform. I understand 35 projects are in place in the local drugs task force area, including mainstreamed and interim funded projects. Of these, 16 are community-based drugs projects, all of which would have one full-time staff member; two of the projects have two full-time workers, that is, 18 full-time community drugs workers in the area.

In terms of education and prevention, the following projects were established: Cork community drugs prevention projects, the club Cork project, the Dion project, the youth information centre and the school support project. In terms of treatment and rehabilitation, the following projects were established: the Cork YMCA youth counselling and support project, the youth health service, the community drugs team, the community-based response to cocaine and Fellowship House, a half-way house for men. Other important initiatives also developed in recent years include: the family support project, the parent support group, the Traveller visibility group, and development and administration support for the task force.

With regard to the southern regional drugs task force which is supported by funding in the region of €800,000 for Cork county, there are seven community drugs initiatives helping young people, each supporting at least 30 people. In addition, there is a link worker in the county who supports people coming out of treatment. Also, there are four after-care workers who work with people to prevent relapse.

The regional drugs task force also operates the strengthening families programme which supports families that have addiction issues. Local and regional drugs task forces are co-operating in developing a response to the growing heroin problem in the city and county.

The response to problem drug use includes the development of a new national drugs strategy for 2009-16 which has just been approved by the Government. Our policy approach to the drugs problem needs to ensure our actions are targeted to achieve the optimum effect. The emphasis has to be on having the appropriate mix of supply reduction, prevention, treatment, rehabilitation and research measures in place to endeavour to deal with problems where they arise and minimise the use of drugs across the country.

In regard to treatment and rehabilitation, the new strategy will aim to develop a national integrated treatment and rehabilitation service that provides drug-free and harm reduction approaches for problem substance users; to use a four-tier model approach, underpinned by an appropriate clinical governance regime; to encourage problem drug users to engage with and avail of such services; to maximise operational synergies between drug addiction services, alcohol treatment and rehabilitation services, general hospital services and mental health services; to expand the availability of detox facilities, opiate substitution services, under-18 services and needle exchange services, where required; and to encourage clients and service providers to push towards rehabilitation, with the necessary link-ups to other services.

Our work on the new national strategy will focus our efforts at national level and, in turn, help to support the invaluable work being done by the local and regional drugs task forces, including the progress being made by the Cork local drugs task force and the southern regional drugs task force.