asked the Minister for Justice if he is satisfied with the present strength of the Garda Drug Squad; the proposals, if any, he has for the provision of further facilities for it; and if he will make a statement on the matter.
Ceisteanna—Questions. Oral Answers. - Garda Drug Squad.
4.
The manpower and other resources allocated to specialised units like the drug squad are matters for decision by the Garda authorities in the light of their assessment of needs and having regard to overall resources and other demands on Garda services. They have informed me that they consider that the equipment and facilities available to the drug squad are adequate for present needs but that they are considering proposals to increase the strength of the permanent units of the squad.
I must emphasise that members of the drug squad are not the only members of the Garda Siochána who are dealing with the prevention and control of drug abuse. In fact, drug abuse is included as part of the standard induction training of every member of the Force and all members are regarded as preventive officers in this respect. This aspect is being further emphasised in a current and expanded training programme which aims to ensure that each Garda division will have a substantial number of its members trained in the detection and prevention of drug abuse who will work in close co-operation with the permanent units of the drug squad.
Is the Minister satisfied with the situation where the streets of Dublin are comparable to those in New York in relation to this very important matter? Forty new cases of heroin addiction are admitted to Jervis Street Hospital daily. The ages of those involved range from 16 to 25 years and some have been as low as 13 years. Does the Minister not agree that as heroin is now the most freely available drug on the streets in Dublin, this is a situation which calls for drastic action, and for the families who are involved it is nothing short of murder for money
All the steps considered necessary by the Garda in the fight against drug abuse have been taken. I have consulted with the Garda Commissioner about the desirability of increasing the numbers in the drug squad but I cannot achieve the increase desired for all the reasons that are known to the Deputy. I refer to the fact that when I became Minister I found that the level of manpower and of recruitment deprived me of the opportunity——
It did not stop the Minister from paying for the letters.
(Interruptions.)
——of meeting the needs of our campaign against drug abuse. Perhaps the former Minister would comment on that.
That is rubbish. It is not worthy of the Minister.
The Minister has invited me to comment.
Has the Deputy a question?
I have no wish to be drawn into the numbers game in relation to Templemore but the Minister knows that the previous Fianna Fáil administration were responsible for the lack of Garda recruits. Therefore, the Minister has told a lie.
I do not think it is permissable for the Deputy to say that.
What he has said is untrue.
The Deputy uses words recklessly.
There was a deliberate decision by Deputy Collins as Minister to delay recruitment.
That allegation is totally unacceptable.
Has the Deputy a question?
It is not wise of the Minister to bring party politics into this serious problem. Apart from the increased numbers in the drug squad and the increased training for gardaí throughout the country, has the Minister considered taking up with Governments abroad, especially in source countries, the question of ways of preventing drug trade to this country? Is he aware of this type of co-operation between other countries and source countries?
The Garda have had communications with their colleagues in many other countries on this matter. They are in constant contact with them in their daily fight against drug abuse. Very recently I availed of the opportunity of discussing this drugs problem with senior police officers from another country. We discussed how the campaign to defeat drug abuse might best succeed. The Garda are satisfied that the resources available to them, particularly in respect of manpower, have been deployed and will not be increased until such time as further manpower becomes available.
Can the Minister confirm that the strength of the drug squad is as follows: one detective inspector, three detective sergeants, 14 detective gardaí and two ban-ghardaí and that there has been a reduction in numbers to the extent of one in five compared with six weeks ago? Can the Minister say also whether the chief of the drug squad has asked for further personnel in the recent past and, if so, if the Minister is prepared to respond to that request immediately?
I do not know whether the person the Deputy considers to be the chief of the drug squad is one and the same person as the one I have in mind. Consequently, it would be difficult to answer the question, but I would make the point that to speak about a reduction in the numbers of the drug squad would be unfair and inaccurate. Members of the drug squad have been deployed in what is known as the serious crime force, of which the problem of drug abuse forms the greater part, with the purpose of pursuing and following up those people known as the godfathers of drugs in Dublin City and throughout the country. There has not been any reduction in the personnel directly involved in the campaign against those who push drugs and sell them publicly.
In view of the fact that those involved in the administration of the force against these drug abusers are of the opinion that three or perhaps four families in the Dublin region are responsible for organising this crime, would the Minister take that special element into consideration when he is making available additional facilities, manpower and so on, to the drug squad?
That is a sensible question. I am glad to say that I have taken serious congnisance of the element to which the Deputy refers. I, too, have heard references being made frequently to certain families and in that context the serious crime squad have been formed and supplemented with personnel from the drug squad, people who have very special expertise and experience in this area.
This must be a final supplementary.
In the light of the discussions the Minister has had on this matter with the Garda Commissioner, has he been made aware by the commissioner that in Ranelagh in a semi-derelict property which is owned by Dublin Corporation, there are a number of squatters who are known to be pushing drugs openly but that the corporation for a variety of legal reasons have been unable to move against them? If the Minister is so aware will he direct the forces of the serious crime squad to this situation since one of the families to whom Deputy Mitchell was referring is implicated in this Ranelagh house? It is a situation that needs to be dealt with urgently because it is a serious slight and imposition on all of the families in the vicinity concerned.
I thank the Deputy for that information and, if he has not communicated it to the Garda or if he wishes me to transmit it to them, I should like him to communicate with me after Question Time.