Catherine Byrne (Dublin South Central, Fine Gael) | Oireachtas source

I thank Senator Warfield for his interesting and touching contribution on the initiative in respect of drug-taking at festivals. I also thank him for giving me the opportunity to update the House on harm-reduction measures.

Through its strategy, Reducing Harm, Supporting Recovery, the Government is committed to a health-led approach to drug use. While the advice from the Department of Health and the HSE is that people attending festivals should inform themselves about the dangers of taking drugs and, preferably, should not take drugs at all, reducing the harms caused to individuals, families and communities by substance misuse is at the core of the strategy. Harm reduction incorporates a spectrum of strategies from safer use to managed use and abstinence. The HSE has previously undertaken awareness campaigns, including "What's in the Pill", and in July, I launched the HSE's harm reduction campaign in relation to cocaine and crack cocaine. In addition, the HSE has issued harm reduction information to festivalgoers based on UK reports from similar events.

We are all too familiar with the fact that recreational settings such as nightclubs and festivals are associated with use of drugs, including ecstasy, amphetamines and new psychoactive substances. The risks associated with the use of drugs in these settings may be increased if it is in combination with other drugs, particularly alcohol. While the provision of drug-testing kits at nightclubs and festivals, for example, might allow people who use drugs to gain feedback regarding the content and potency of what they are consuming, this approach has been criticised as having the potential to inform people who use drugs that what they are consuming is safe when that is not the case.I also understand from the evidence review that doubts remain regarding the accuracy and consistency of commonly used testing equipment.

The HSE's addiction services has had preliminary discussions with emergency health providers who attend music events. It has examined emerging approaches that provide targeted preventive messages to recreational drug users. Our strategy, Reducing Harm, Supporting Recovery, looked at evidence related to interventions to tackle the drug problem, including drug testing as a harm reduction measure. It includes a specific action which aims to strengthen early harm reduction responses to current and emerging trends, as well as patterns of drug use. This will be delivered by establishing a working group to examine the evidence on early harm reduction responses such as drug testing. The working group will draw together the relevant stakeholders and examine the available evidence, along with best practice models from other countries to help determine the appropriate response in Ireland. The Department of Health and the HSE aim to establish this working group in 2019.