Written answers

Tuesday, 6 October 2009

Department of Community, Rural and Gaeltacht Affairs

National Drugs Strategy

9:00 pm

Photo of Tommy BroughanTommy Broughan (Dublin North East, Labour)
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Question 162: To ask the Minister for Community, Rural and Gaeltacht Affairs the main feature of the new National Drugs Strategy 2009 to 2016 launched on 10 September 2009; the additional financial resources which will be allocated to fight drugs during this period; and if he will make a statement on the matter. [34192/09]

Photo of John CurranJohn Curran (Dublin Mid West, Fianna Fail)
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The National Drugs Strategy 2009-2016 aims to continue to tackle the harm caused to individuals and society by the misuse of drugs through a concerted focus on five pillars, Supply Reduction, Prevention, Treatment, Rehabilitation and Research.

Under the supply reduction pillar there will be renewed emphasis on reducing the volume of illicit drugs, disrupting the activities of organised criminal networks, and targeting income from illicit drug trafficking. The continued roll-out of Local Policing Fora and the inclusion of drugs issues in a more central way in the work of Joint Policing Committees are also envisaged.

Various prevention and education interventions are planned, focusing on young people, both in the school and the non-school setting, as well as on the overall population. A sustained range of awareness campaigns is envisaged as part of this approach.

The new Strategy also envisages the development of a national integrated treatment and rehabilitation service and every effort will be made to encourage drug users to engage with services. Among the initiatives proposed are speedier access to treatment, the achievement of operational synergies between service providers in the statutory, voluntary and community sectors and increased opiate substitution, needle exchange, treatment in prisons and detox facilities.

With respect to research, the emphasis will be on ensuring the availability of accurate, timely, relevant and comparable data to inform decisions on initiatives to counteract problem drug use.

I am not in a position to say at this stage what additional financial resources might be allocated to tackle the drugs problem during the period up to 2016. It is clear that resources will be scarce in the coming years and so it is imperative that the optimum use is made of available funding. However, this funding is considerable, with over €275m being available across the different Departments and agencies this year.

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