Written answers

Thursday, 9 November 2006

Department of Community, Rural and Gaeltacht Affairs

National Drugs Strategy

5:00 pm

Photo of Bernard DurkanBernard Durkan (Kildare North, Fine Gael)
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Question 193: To ask the Minister for Community, Rural and Gaeltacht Affairs the number and value of applicants for funding currently before his Department from groups involved in the fight against and the provision of drug rehabilitation courses; and if he will make a statement on the matter. [37298/06]

Photo of Noel AhernNoel Ahern (Dublin North West, Fianna Fail)
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Since 1997, across the 14 Local Drugs Task Force areas, over 440 community-based projects have been established with funding in the region of €122m provided. These projects, some of which have been mainstreamed to other Departments and Agencies in the interim, employ more than 300 people. In the current year, 361 projects, including those under the Emerging Needs Fund, are receiving interim funding totalling €20.2m from my Department. Of these, 174 projects deal with the issues of treatment and rehabilitation. I allocated €5m in 2006 to the ten Regional Drugs Task Forces (RDTFs) to facilitate the commencement of the implementation of their action plans. The National Drugs Strategy Team (NDST) has been working closely with the RDTFs to get their programmes up and running as speedily as possible. A total of 59 projects proposed by the RDTFs deal with treatment and rehabilitation and are currently at various stages of development.

Projects normally originate at Drugs Task Force level and are submitted to the National Drugs Strategy Team. Following consideration by the NDST recommendations for funding of some projects are made to my Department. No applications for funding of rehabilitation initiatives, or courses associated with rehabilitation, are currently with the Department.

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