Alex White (Dublin South, Labour) | Oireachtas source

On 7 January last, my Department received a proposal from the Howth Sutton Community Council for funding to establish a drugs and alcohol prevention project in south-east Fingal, which would serve communities in Baldoyle, Bayside, Sutton and Howth. The council wishes to set up a project to address a gap in service provision, as outlined by the Senator, that has arisen as a result of the closure in June 2012 of a community-based drugs project serving the Howth Sutton peninsula. Funding for the latter project was withdrawn by the HSE as a result of deficits in governance, financial control and accountability that emerged during an audit of the project.

The need for support within communities around prevention education for young people and support for families has been identified by Howth Sutton Community Council on the basis of findings from a strategic evaluation of projects conducted by Dublin north-east local drugs task force in late 2011. This evaluation included the former project serving the Howth Sutton peninsula. Supplementary research undertaken with local schools and community actors in late 2012 also informed the research findings.

The key recommendations arising from the research are that a project be developed in partnership with existing community and statutory agencies, which would work with schools, youth and family support groups to develop local strategies for substance misuse education and prevention. The proposal envisages that the project would initially focus on prevention, education and family support, with expansion into client-case management to be undertaken in the medium term if resources become available. The cost of the project, which would involve hiring a co-ordinator and a project worker, is estimated at €79,000 per annum.

As the Senator will be aware drugs task forces play a key role in assessing the nature of the drug problem in their areas and co-ordinating action at local level so that there is a targeted response to the drug problem in local communities. A total of €29.951 million has been allocated to the drugs initiative in 2013, the majority of which contributes to the running of community-based drugs projects supported by local and regional drugs task forces. This includes an allocation of €988,234 to the Dublin north-east local drugs task force, LDTF, which has responsibility for tackling the drug problem in the south-east Fingal area.

It is a matter for each drugs task force to decide which projects to support based on agreed priorities for their area within the overall budget available to them. The allocation to Dublin north-east LDTF was determined on the basis of the community-based drugs projects it recommended for funding in 2013.

I have been in contact with Howth Sutton Community Council and have advised it to submit the proposal to Dublin north-east LDTF for consideration. I have indicated that my Department will consider the proposal if it has been recommended by the task force. At this stage, the drugs task forces have been advised of their allocations for 2013. The funding of any additional measures is contingent upon the resources which are available to me for the year.

I wish to explain that to the House again. I do not have a discretionary budget. In general it is not a question of making an application to the Minister and for the Minister or departmental officials to review the project. I can see that this is a project of merit and I agree there is a gap in this area. I know the need that exists as the Senator has very carefully and persuasively outlined to the House. However, I cannot deal with the matter unless it comes to me by way of a recommendation from the local drugs task force. I have explained that to the local drugs task force and have also responded to Howth Sutton Community Council. However, if we were to seek to identify funding - difficult as that would be - it would inevitably affect the funding that would then not be available for other activities because I have a limited amount of funding available. While the Senator makes her case very well, there is a finite amount of funding. I could certainly not reallocate for 2013 unless I took money from somewhere else. We will need to see how matters are for 2014, but I also expect resources to be finite next year. I regret that resources are so limited, particularly in this area where the need is so great. However, we know why resources are limited and what has caused the overall financial situation the country faces. I am trying to do my best, as are the local drugs task forces with the funding available to them.