Jennifer Carroll MacNeill (Dún Laoghaire, Fine Gael) | Oireachtas source

I thank Senator Wall for raising this matter. This is not my area of responsibility; I am here on behalf of another Minister. However, I would be very interested in going to see the services provided. It is extraordinary what the commitment of that community group and the drive of individuals in community support can bring to a particular matter. Sharon Malloy is to be commended, as are all those involved, on the work they are doing and the intervention that is being made. I know that Willow takes a broader approach than simple diagnosis and treatment; it also includes the really important elements of mental health counselling and addiction counselling, without which no long-term impacts can be achieved. I appreciate that approach. The Department of Health suggests that because Willow Counselling covers a number of different disciplines including substance use and mental health, and because they cater for young people also, there are broader streams of funding that may be available to them including from HSE mental health services, Tusla and other organisations. I do wish this was my own area of direct responsibility so I could provide a deeper answer to the Senator today. I apologise to him that it is not so.

I had understood that Willow was in receipt of public funding of €40,000 a year, although the Senator said it is €47,500, under the grant aid agreement. I am also aware that it received €15,000 in December 2022 in one-off additional funding for the provision of extra counselling hours. I hope that has been useful but it may have also shown the path in terms of quite how useful it is and how much more needs to be funded. I am aware of that also. The Ministers of State, Deputies Butler and Naughton, have published the strategic action plan for the implementation of the national drugs strategy for 2023 and 2024. The plan has a total of 34 actions based on the six strategic priorities following the review of the strategy in 2021. However, that only matters if those concrete actions make a measurable difference to the lives of people affected by drug use. One of the six strategic priorities is to enhance access to and delivery of drug and alcohol services in the community, exactly as the Senator has described. That priority seeks to enhance community care, which is important for people who are using drugs, by providing health and social care services at community level to meet the identified health needs. The Department of Health is very aware of the important role that organisations such as Willow Community Counselling Services play under the drugs strategy in assisting individuals and their families to cope with mental health and addiction issues. There is a commitment of the HSE addiction services to strengthen links with Willow Athy to support those presenting with drug and alcohol issues. The Department also suggests exploring those additional streams of funding, which I am sure the board has already considered and may in fact be activating at this point.