asked the Minister for Health when the report of the Working Party on Drug Abuse will be published; and to whom it will be made available.
Ceisteanna—Questions. Oral Answers. - Report on Drug Abuse.
32.
I would refer the Deputy to the reference to the matter in my reply to the debate on the Health Vote on 26th March, 1969 (Dáil Debate Vol. 239 No. 7 Columns 10161917). I stated that I hoped to have the recommendations of the working party in the near future although I had not set any time limit on their deliberations because I thought that this was a field in which to do so would be illadvised.
The working party will furnish their report to me. I will then consider the question of its circulation.
Can the Minister give us any idea of what the working party have been doing?
Working.
As he knows, this problem has been gathering momentum, unfortunately, in recent months in Dublin and there is great alarm being expressed. The working party had a great deal of information at their disposal at the outset and I cannot see any great excuse for their delaying longer with the publication of their report. During the adjournment debate before Christmas, the Minister anticipated the setting-up of a clinic even before the report was issued. The clinic has not been set up, the report is not available, the problem gets worse and it is time there were some action on it.
I will be dealing with the matter in the next question which refers to a clinic.