Vol. 513 No. 5
14 Mr. Hayes asked the Minister for Tourism, Sport and Recreation if he has considered the establishment of a drugs ombudsman to oversee the work of the drugs task force in each relevant area of the country and to respond to the view of drug abusers in relation to the service provided to them; and if he will make a statement on the matter. [26701/99]
The views of drug users are potentially very valuable in determining the appropriateness and responsiveness of programmes and services intended to meet their needs. All the local drugs task forces have been requested by the national drugs strategy team to consider the possibility of establishing drug user fora in their areas. These fora will act as a mechanism for ensuring consultation between task forces and local drug users in relation to the effectiveness of current or planned programmes and services.
My Department – in pursuance of its objective to co-ordinate the development of an effective overall policy to tackle drug misuse – has initiated a review of the national drugs strategy, and I am arranging for the matter raised by the Deputy to be considered in the context of this review.
