I welcome the Minister to the House.
EU Drugs Monitoring Service: Statements.
I am glad to avail of this opportunity to make a statement to the House on the recently published annual report on the state of the drugs problem in the European Union by the European Monitoring Centre for Drugs and Drug Addiction, EMC. I will address what this Government is doing about the problem but first, I want to give the House some information on the EMC, its role and functions.
The centre was established by European Union regulation in 1994 with its headquarters in Lisbon. Its task is to provide objective, reliable and comparable information at European Union level concerning drugs and drug addiction and their consequences. It gathers information on the demand for drugs and measures to reduce the demand; national and European community strategies and policies; international co-operation and the geopolitics of supply and the control of trade in narcotic drugs, psychotropic substances and precursor chemicals. It is also involved in aiming to reduce the number of people turning to drug misuse in the first instance through information, education and prevention programmes and providing a range of treatment options for those addicted to drugs, the ultimate objective of which must be a return to a drug-free lifestyle. Although this may not be a realistic goal in every instance, it must be a goal in the short term at least.
A ministerial task force on measures to reduce the demand for drugs was set up by the previous Government in 1996 and produced two reports. The first report, published in October 1996, identified a response to the heroin problem as a priority and its recommendations in relation to service provision were as follows: the speedy establishment of information databases by the health boards in order to establish the extent of addiction; health boards were to move to eliminate drug treatment waiting lists, with the Eastern Health Board waiting list to be eliminated in 1997; particular attention was to be paid to the needs of young misusers in priority areas, together with priority status for community employment applications offering integrated services for recovering addicts; and a series of education and prevention steps, including stronger truancy measures and anti-drug programmes for all primary schools in priority areas. There was also to be an estate improvement programme for severely run-down urban housing estates and local authorities were to develop sports and recreation activities in priority areas within the national sports strategy framework.
In addition, new structures were put in place involving the establishment of a Cabinet subcommittee on drugs, a national drugs strategy team and 13 local drugs task forces in areas where the hard drug problem was most acute. Twelve of these are in Dublin and one is in north Cork city. A sum of £10 million was made available for the implementation of service development plans in the task force areas as well as £1 million for services in health boards outside Dublin and £3 million for estate improvements by local authorities.
When this Government assumed office, it decided that the work already in progress should not only continue but be given a new impetus. The brief of the Cabinet sub-committee was therefore expanded to include social inclusion and local development in addition to drugs, as it is considered that the drugs problem is a manifestation of wider problems of economic and social deprivation that contribute to a sense of exclusion for some sectors of our society. This is borne out by the Health Research Board's Report on Treated Drug Misuse for 1995 which outlined that of the 3,600 cases treated in the greater Dublin area, 63 per cent had left school at or before the official school leaving age of 15 years and 87 per cent were unemployed.
The second ministerial task force report dealt with drugs other than heroin and found that the misuse of such drugs is a nationwide phenomenon, the misuse of ecstasy and cannabis being most common. Its key recommendations were to establish a youth services development fund, with contributions from the Exchequer and the corporate sector, to develop youth services in the most disadvantaged areas. It also recommended the development of a number of other initiatives aimed at meeting the needs of young people in disadvantaged areas where drug misuse is most prevalent.
The Department of Health and Children and other agencies continue with the implementation of the recommendations in the two ministerial task force reports. I will now outline for the House the progress made in the development of treatment, prevention and education and other services.
I will start with information and research. All health boards are working on the establishment of information databases which will provide accurate and timely data on the subject of drug misuse. Earlier this year, a meeting of all boards was held and health board representatives were briefed on developments at European level regarding the standardisation of data so that it can be comparable from one area to the next. A working group is currently formulating these standards so that by 1998 all health boards will have comparable data.
In the area of research, 26 research projects have been given a total of £1 million funding through Forbairt's science and technology against drugs initiative during 1997. This was grant aided by Europe for this purpose. A number of health boards have also undertaken research into the extent and nature of drug misuse.
One of the areas I consider hugely important is addiction. During 1997, the addiction studies course in Trinity College, which is funded by the Department of Health and Children, was given additional funding to double its input of students in the 1997-98 academic year. The college is developing a Master's degree course in addiction studies.
Let me focus for a few moments on treatment services for those already caught up in the drug scene. All health boards have developed appropriate prevention and treatment facilities to respond to the drug problem in their respective areas. The Eastern Health Board developed a comprehensive service plan for 1997 aimed at eliminating waiting lists for treatment by the end of the year and expanding all of its services, particularly rehabilitation services. The board has commenced an emergency and assessment service in a number of its treatment centres. Treatment services are being expanded throughout the board and the emphasis is on providing treatment to people in their own local area.
The methadone prescription/dispensing scheme continues to be expanded, evaluated and regulated. The total number of people on the central treatment list is 2,660, with approximately 70 GPs and 55 pharmacies involved in the scheme. A review group was established to examine the arrangements for the prescribing and dispensing of methadone. Its recommendations are now being implemented and I am satisfied that the full implementation of these recommendations will help remedy the present unsatisfactory elements of the service. By inappropriate elements I refer to inappropriate dispensing by certain GPs. A small number of practices appear to be signing scripts for a fee. I also believe that some pharmacies are dispensing far more than should be normal for their local areas.
This morning, I met concerned groups in Dún Laoghaire. There is a need to ensure that satellite centres are set up in the appropriate areas but attempts appear to be made to prevent this happening. If we are to have successful drug treatment programmes, drug treatment and satellite centres must be set up. Each area must take its own share of the burden otherwise the drug treatment programme is undermined. There seems to be an element of "not in my back yard" involved in this.
Health boards must provide appropriate facilities; we cannot turn away from this problem. It is estimated that there are 8,000 addicts in the Eastern Health Board area alone, but only 2,666 are on the voluntary register. It may be necessary to make that register mandatory, as there should be notification of any occasion an addict obtains a prescription or receives methadone from a pharmacy. Addicts should be on a database and kept on the register.
Concerns have been expressed about drug treatment centres. It is important that we have consultants in those centres. Satellite centres can be used for those who have been stabilised by a medical and clinical course of methadone treatment. In the past, methadone distribution has not been regulated, and if there is no analysis while addicts receive methadone we are defeating the purpose of the programme. People cannot use an illegal opiate, heroin, and then be given methadone to top up their addiction. When methadone is prescribed and then resold the situation is even worse. The State is then subsidising the consumption of drugs.
Methadone is very dangerous if not used in the proper circumstances, and I intend to regulate this area in the coming months. The Dublin City Coroner has expressed concerns at deaths that may have occurred from overdose of methadone rather than illegal opiates. That is intolerable and cannot be allowed to continue. Those who are genuinely interested in treatment should have a drug treatment programme available to them which may involve the dispensing of methadone in regulated and controlled circumstances. If there are addicts on those programmes who subsequently fall back into addiction and the illegal consumption of heroin, then consultants and others running these programmes should have the freedom to decide whether those addicts should remain on those programmes or continue with their chaotic lifestyle of addiction. We cannot allow methadone to be dispensed to people who are not serious about or genuinely involved in a drug rehabilitation programme but who are using that programme to top up their illegal opiate addiction with methadone provided by the State.
This strategy has, however, been reasonably successful to date. It will continue to succeed only with the consent and support of communities. If people turn against the prospect of satellite centres or drug treatment centres in their area, that defeats the best interest of those communities. If an uncontrolled addiction situation continues and flourishes, it will undermine the fabric of that community and destroy individual lives. I plead with communities where addiction is prevalent to recognise that a positive contribution can be made by facilitating the health authorities in providing satellite centres or drug treatment centres. That is becoming more apparent to the task force and drug strategy team. In the absence of proper, fully resourced and well equipped centres, we will not get a handle on this problem, and that is a major concern for me. I appeal to local public representatives and community activists to ensure that the purpose of these schemes is not defeated by deferring the provision of satellite centres. To do so would be to put the progress made so far at risk.
People feel that more co-operation and more general practitioners are needed. Those doctors would each deal with a small number of stabilised addicts for the provision and dispensing of methadone. We also need more pharmacies to co-operate. There is a need for every area of the health service to come together and deal with this situation in a way that will give confidence. Recently some doctors and pharmacies have been reluctant to get involved because they feel they may be asked to take too many addicts on their books and that if addicts destabilise business problems will be caused. The purpose of the strategy is that in a consultant based treatment centre situation, if addicts show signs of being less stabilised than when they came out of satellite centres or having their methadone dispensed from pharmacies, then they can be referred back to the drug treatment centre under the direct care of the consultant. A stabilised situation would then re-emerge. There is also the prospect of providing more detoxification places for those who require long term care.
It is important to recognise the problems in this area. We need the co-operation of more bodies than the health authorities, who are committed to putting a credible drug treatment programme in place for those who wish to break their addiction. We must recognise that a certain percentage of people will want to continue with their chaotic lifestyles. They have chosen to continue and are not interested in rehabilitation at this time. However, we must make sure we have the resources available so that an addict who wants to break an addiction can be taken in by the system, assessed by consultants and put in a proper drug treatment programme.
It is important to remember that estimates of the total number of drug misusers would suggest that considerable further expansion of services is required in order that health services can adequately address the needs of drug misusers presenting for treatment. The Eastern Health Board is providing a total of £2.2 million to voluntary and community organisations in 1997 to support the valuable work done in the area of drug misuse prevention, treatment and support for drug misusers and their families. In addition, up to 30 community support workers will be employed by the board by the end of the year. Because of the importance of rehabilitation the board is ploughing in significant resources towards expanding the number of rehabilitation places available. This development of further rehabilitation facilities for stabilised drug users will be a priority issue for me.
There are ongoing education and prevention measures. Resource materials for primary schools have been developed. A programme has been successfully piloted with special emphasis on the delivery of the programme in schools in priority areas. Health boards are providing a range of services including parenting programmes and modules for youth clubs and other agencies dealing with young people. The Health Promotion Unit, in conjunction with the Cork Social and Health Education Project of the Southern Health Board, has developed a parenting programme on drugs and family communication. The unit has also funded Community Awareness of Drugs, a voluntary organisation with offices in Dame Court, Dublin 2, to develop a ‘Parenting for Prevention' programme. The unit's Drug Questions — Local Answers Programme, which is being disseminated throughout the country, helps local communities to address the drugs problems in their locality. The Eastern Health Board has appointed six education officers and four more will be in place by the end of the year, and the board launched an anti-heroin campaign in May.
There are other aspects of the EMC report which I want to touch on before I finish. I have dealt up to now with what is known as the demand reduction aspect of the drug problem. The EMC report deals with other aspects, such as strategies on supply reduction, the joint actions being taken by the EU and the overall international environment for co-operation. In so far as supply reduction is concerned, a range of legislative measures has been put in place. These include the establishment of the Criminal Assets Bureau in 1996; the introduction of legislation to give gardaí the powers necessary for effective action; the passing of the Criminal Justice (Drug Trafficking) Act, 1996, which provides for periods of detention of up to seven days; the Disclosure of Information for Taxation and Other Purposes Act, 1996, which provides for more effective exchange of information between the Garda and the Revenue Commissioners; the Licensing (Combating Drug Abuse) Act, 1997, which provides more powers for gardaí to deal with drug abuse in dance halls and pubs; the Criminal Justice (Miscellaneous Provisions) Act, 1997, which reduces the amount of time spent by gardaí on court related duties and the Non-Fatal Offences Against the Person Act, 1997, which has focused on remedies to deal with new life threatening menaces such as syringe attacks.
Ireland is also working at EU level to improve co-operation among member states in responding to drugs issues. In late 1996, Ireland ratified the UN Convention Against Illicit Traffic in Narcotic Drugs and Psychotropic Substances and the Council of Europe Convention on Laundering, Search, Seizure and Confiscation of the Proceeds of Crime.
I wish to conclude by reiterating to the House that the fight against drugs is one in which a number of Government Departments and State agencies have a role. I have resolved to play my part in preventing the increase in drug abuse. It is an essential part of my job that the health services continue to develop their role, particularly in the areas where the drug problem is most acute. This must be matched by a commitment from all other agencies, both statutory and voluntary. The Government must work with local communities to build up social and economic infrastructures where people are encouraged to turn from drug misuse as a way of coping with life. It is at community level that real success can be achieved.
Our primary defence against the misuse of all drugs, including alcohol and tobacco, is the educational system, both formal and non-formal, where young people can be equipped with the skills and knowledge to make informed decisions about the use of drugs in their lives. The extent of drug misuse in Ireland, as identified in both the EMC and ESPAD reports, highlights the need to intensify our efforts both at prevention and treatment levels. We have developed the foundations for appropriate responses to the drug problem and now we must continue to build on this with the aim of reducing the extent of drug misuse in the years to come.
I am delighted the Minister came to the House to deal with this important issue and that he spoke about the regulation of dispensing methadone. He also made an impassioned plea for co-operation between the community and the satellite centres dealing specifically with drug addiction.
Drug addiction has always been associated with headlines, which reflects the nature of Irish society. We have always ignored the fact that alcohol abuse, child sexual abuse, violence against women and other horrific crimes existed until we realised there was an endemic problem. We failed to nip these problems in the bud. As a teacher, I have seen how young people are enslaved and ensnared by drugs at an early stage through substance abuse. We have tried to eliminate Tipp-Ex and glue sniffing. The public was not aware this would lead to more dangerous drug abuse. I was not surprised by the statistics which are the focus of this debate — along with Britain, we have the highest instance of drug abuse.
I accept there are areas of priority as regards disadvantage and social exclusion. This issue was not given the emphasis it deserved until it concerned middle-class parents. Priority areas have to be highlighted, but I am concerned that the merry-go-round of soft drugs associated with every village, town and city in the country will not be dealt with immediately. I understand the need for resources and how difficult it is to deal with the problem. However, funding should be distributed across the board. While the priority areas are given priority, the other areas, if ignored through lack of finance, will become a problem. I do not know how this will be arrested if it continues to happen, although I do not wish to be that pessimistic.
As a teacher, local representative and a former member of the Mid-Western Health Board, I know of the levels of drug abuse, which people were not aware of until recently, because parents do not want to believe their child is taking drugs. In retrospect, I know my daughter was smoking and drinking at an age I did not believe possible. I know about it now because she is mature, has explained to me what she did and laughed about it. She is 28 years old. The problems of drink and tobacco substances, which youngsters will always dabble with because they are exciting, have existed for years. It is obvious that parents have not accepted that drug abuse affects their Johnny or Mary. It is frightening that parents are the last to accept that their children have access to drugs.
The problem is not just associated with second level students. Children aged nine, ten, 11 and 12 are also affected. I call on parents to understand the drugs issue. Some parents attend parent-teacher meetings where the local drugs squad speak to them while others think it is an issue which does not concern them.
The Minister highlighted the complexity of the issue. I am concerned that media headlines often mask the underlying torment and problems associated with it. I listened to "The Gay Byrne Show" yesterday and heard the mother and mother-in-law of a 23 year old heroin addict whose two children were affected by her drug taking and physical suffering. The girl received £10,000 from an insurance claim which she spent in six weeks. This was frightening and made me realise what people will do for drugs. A case like this does more to highlight the problem than books, reports and surveys, which do not filter through to concerned parents.
Drug abuse does not only affect a person's health. People can be arrested for possession and supply. The additional problems of AIDS, robbery, theft and violence are all associated with drug misuse. We cannot underestimate the costs to the individual or family in terms of suffering. In the past, responses to the problem of drug misuse, not just here but abroad, tended to concentrate on the reduction of supplies and to legislate for stricter enforcement measures. To a large extent these measures were successful in limiting suffering and frustrating the efforts of organised suppliers of illicit drugs, but they can only be fully effective if operated in conjunction with policies covering the area of education, treatment and social occupational rehabilitation.
In the short time available to me I want to look at the basic element, concentrating on education — the area with which I am most familiar — as a means of primary prevention. It is not always politically correct to look at long-term solutions because people cry out for pragmatic solutions but, because I am a teacher, I believe the role of the school is of the utmost importance and cannot be overstated. Schools have a multifaceted role. They must educate through structured programmes in which students may be helped to avoid experimenting with or misusing drugs to prepare them for life by enabling them to take charge of their own health, encourage them to recognise the benefits of a healthy and drug free lifestyle and protect them by limiting the availability of drugs in the school environment.
It is important to collaborate with all other agencies to ensure there is a comprehensive structured approach towards evaluating the effectiveness of drug education programmes in our schools. If we do not have an evaluation mechanism we will not know whether drug education programmes are benefiting those students.
There must be a clear policy in respect of the management of students who have abused drugs. Recently, I read in a British publication, The Times Education Supplement, that research has shown the key debate for schools concerns the severe penalties approach versus the pastoral approach. Traditionally, the model involving severe penalties was typical. In other words, you just got rid of the students by expelling them or suspending them indefinitely. It was not successful because it failed to discriminate between those who were experimenting and those who were serious abusers. It is not sensible to exclude those who are most at risk and throw them onto the street. Education presumes that young people can learn, change and improve. We can benefit from that approach.
It is vital that teaching drug related issues in schools should take place within the broader context of ongoing health education programmes. I teach in the Presentation secondary school, an inner city establishment in Limerick. For ten years it dealt with drugs education as part of an integrated health and social education programme, which proved to be very successful. Dealing with drugs misuse on a once off basis can have the effect of highlighting interest or sensationalising the topic. Remember that we are dealing with students who are permanently exposed to sensational topics, including drink and sex. That is not the way forward for them.
In the past we felt that second level students were still young and tender so we tended to focus on third level. Now, however, the emphasis must be on primary level, especially in high risk environments, as the Minister mentioned. Such environments do not always necessarily mean disadvantaged areas. Affluent areas are also high risk environments. Of course, priority must be given to disadvantaged areas of social exclusion, but I am also concerned about affluent environments where young students may have ready access to money. They can manipulate parents who may not wish to believe their children are at risk.
Education on drugs must take place at three levels: at the final years of primary level when young people leave the sheltered environment of their first school, at second level young adolescents are most at risk when thrust into peer relationships possibly in different areas with new friends, and the level outside and beyond school which we must examine.
In dealing with education on drugs, the health and education programme stresses the encouragement of recognising the benefits of a generally healthy and drug free lifestyle as well as giving students accurate information about the harmful effects of drugs on their health. The Mid-Western Health Board looked at the idea of utilising the Limerick hurling team to emphasise that you can have fun and become a good role model to be emulated. There were different reactions to that innovation. Some people said they wanted tips not hurleys. It was an effort by the health board to utilise a vibrant young hurling team to become a role model for students, thus telling them they could get their kicks from sport. It was a gamble that paid off in the Mid Western Health Board's region, although some people criticised this use of resources when there were hospital waiting lists for cataract and hip replacement operations.
From a teaching viewpoint, elements of prevention must take place within a caring school climate. Co-operation between parents and school is an integral part of that. The school structure facilitates this through the principal, the guidance counsellor, the home school liaison officer and pastoral care liaising with parents and parents' councils.
Members of the Garda Síochána's Drug Squad have been to the fore in making a major effort in the past when there was little or no emphasis on drugs. They were able to gauge the need and could see the effects of fall out from drug abuse. In Limerick two retired gardaí, Garda Michael Murphy and Garda Michael Marrinan, came to schools to alert students to the drug problem. In their Garda work they employed an early intervention policy with few arrests, keeping Limerick city drug free for many years. Their work was continued and followed up by Detective Garda Oliver Stapleton who has 16 years' experience. Not alone does he work in an official capacity by giving talks to students of all ages as well as parents and community groups, he also devotes his free time to doing similar work. There is a massive positive mood on the part of such professionals to come together and give of their expertise for the benefit of students and parents. We should be looking more closely at this integrated approach.
The Minister mentioned the work of the Eastern Health Board which is similar to that of the Mid-Western Health Board whose committee on drugs misuse is headed by Mr. Brian Neeson, the health promotion officer. He heads an integrated team including representatives of the Association of Secondary Teachers of Ireland, the health board, the Limerick youth service, health board GPs, a pharmacist, a garda and a member of the clergy. That is the way forward because it links many strands. Counselling services are available with plans for three extra addiction counsellors. The resources the Minister spoke of should be provided for established organisations and committees which have expertise, so that it is not a case of reinventing the wheel but helping people to work with what already exists.
A couple of years ago the then Department of Health produced an adult education video entitled "My Best Friend" which is used in all second level schools. It was nominated for a prestigious international video award. Another film, "On My Own Two Feet", which the Minister mentioned, is used by about 80 per cent of second level schools. It places emphasis on students taking charge of their own health by making conscious and informed decisions about the use of drugs, both legal and illegal, in their lives.
The National Parents Council's post primary section and the Voluntary Health Insurance Board have also produced information leaflets and television advertisements have been broadcast. Each group seems to be working extremely hard, but the problem is so immense that it has galloped ahead of all remedial efforts to control it. That does not mean, however, that one shies away from it and admits it has gone beyond our intervention. It definitely deserves an enormous commitment, a community/statutory body and an integrated approach whereby citizens would recognise drug misuse as their problem because it affects society. While an individual or family may not be personally involved, they can recognise drug related problems including vicious attacks on the elderly and loutish behaviour on our streets. They can also recognise the fact that families can be riven by the enormous problem of having an addicted member.
We all know the harrowing effects of drug abuse, from the very soft ones through to heroin which is the biggest killer of all. Education is the key to tackling the drugs problem. However, remedial action must also be taken in the short term. An integrated approach between agencies and services is the key component in the battle against drugs. This would create awareness among parents and young people about who they should approach if a problem arises.
The aim of our agencies is to prevent drug abuse and to support young people and families at risk. It is not intended to be punitive. Parents and young people can find a sympathetic ear if they approach key personnel in schools, the Garda Síochána and the health boards. The extraordinary economic boom has a positive effect on our society, but it would be shocking if we forgot about its dark, bleak side. We must use our resources, including moneys provided in the budget on 3 December, to solve this problem. Everyone, including health boards and community groups, must help to promote the millennium as a time when young people can live fulfilled lives without the spectre of drug abuse. That is our challenge in the remaining years of this decade.
Ba mhaith liom fáilte a chuir roimh an Aire Stáit go dtí an Teach seo chun fadhb na ndrugaí a phlé. I do not understand why reports are not written in simple language. It would take a day to read this report and to understand the information in it. I appeal to those writing reports to make them more simple so that people can read and understand them.
We think drugs are new, but every generation had problems with them. At the end of the last century and the early part of this century poitín and shebeen houses were a terrible scourge. In an effort to come to grips with the problem, many rural villages built temperance halls and Governments brought in rules and regulations to control the sale of alcohol. Ireland was relatively free from alcohol abuse in the 1940s and 1950s, perhaps because of a lack of money after the war. The Pioneer Total Abstinence Association was also set up and it did a lot to encourage young people to join. People took the pledge at their Confirmation to stay off alcohol until they were 21 years of age and many kept that pledge for life.
I remember when the Astoria dance hall was built in Bundoran. If a person was not properly dressed in a suit or had drink taken, they were not allowed in. However, those standards no longer exist. People go to dances now in their old clothes. When our standards and morals disappear, people's lives disintegrate. We should try to maintain high standards rather than dropping to the lowest common denominator.
Liberalism is to blame for our drug problems. I welcome the Minister's statement that he will do all he can to prevent an increase in drug abuse. This problem is like Frankenstein in that it has got out of control. All we can do is try to control it.
I was a member of a health board for 22 years. I remember at one of the first meetings we had a discussion with a lady who had come back to work in Ireland. She told us we would need to be careful because drug manufacturers on the Continent and in England, where she had worked, were targeting Ireland as a bonanza. We have created a drugs culture. We believe a doctor is no good unless he prescribes a bottle of pills for every ailment. However, many doctors now agree that advertised medicines, such as vitamins, are no good; yet people continue to buy them.
This report refers to legal and semi-legal drugs. It states that a mixed bag of drugs, which are used as medicines, are not controlled under drug laws but are nevertheless used as intoxicants, such as inhalers. These are as big a problem as illegal drugs. How will we rid the market of such drugs? Many people have died from sniffing glue. We should try to come to grips with this problem.
The Minister said that new laws relating to dance halls and discos will be introduced. I have said for years that plainclothes gardaí should be allowed to attend a disco or dance where drugs are being sold. If people are caught, they should be charged and the owner's licence revoked for one year for a first offence, five years for a second offence and then confiscated for a third offence. That is the only way to tackle this problem.
It is easy to say we do not have enough social and recreational facilities. We spend a lot of money on recreational centres. There are green spaces in every town where children play and horses graze. People lie in front of the television to the early hours of the morning and then get up at 1 p.m. I do not accept that such people should not be made to work.
I have said on many occasions that the Government should bring in a system where everyone who leaves school at 15 or 16 years of age is sent to an institution, such as a boarding school, where they can be educated. There is no point saying to children who do not go to school that their parents, who probably did not go to school either, will be prosecuted. We must take them out of such an environment if we want to change our society.
One would not put a person who had an operation out in the open air. One would put him or her in a sterilised unit where he or she can be treated until he or she was strong enough to go out in the air. These people have problems and we will not solve them until we put an end to truancy. One must remember that truancy was under control when we were going to school and schools were smaller. The percentage of people who cannot read or write is huge despite the millions of pounds that have been spent on education.
Drug abuse has become a huge industry and that is part of the problem. It is an industry for the people who grow the weed and for those who produce solvents and glues. It is an industry for the criminals and for all the people involved in security, the legal and medical professions, the paramedics, etc., so if it ceased in the morning, there would be thousands of people out of work. It will not be dealt with overnight so we must act carefully.
The first way to tackle the problem is through education, but we will not be able to educate children who are running around in a drug polluted environment by telling them that they must go to school, because they will not go. We must develop a system which takes those people out of that environment to a sort of boarding school in which they could receive training and controlled recreation. They could probably become good sportspeople. They might even become Formula One drivers. They need a place where they can get an opportunity to use their energies and talents. These teenagers are not stupid. Any 12 year old who can start a car in five seconds has plenty of grey matter, but it is not being channelled in the right way. That is why I say that they must be put in an environment which will challenge their ability and energy. That is one way of coming to grips with the drug problem.
There is a problem within the community. Community care is a great notion which has been bandied about over the past 15 years, but the community does not want care because people are not willing to realise that a percentage of drug users can benefit from satellite centres — the local community centres or parish hall, as it was in my day — and I would appeal to the community to support these centres.
Everybody agrees the community must have drug treatment centres, proper caravan sites for travellers, cemeteries and dumps; but if one sets about providing these services anywhere in Ireland, all of a sudden the designated area will have archaeological significance, beautiful rivers, fish life and huge potential — of which we had never heard — precluding such development. However, nothing seems to be developed when these services are not assigned to these areas. Nobody wants to face the reality. If community services are to be provided, we must educate the community to accept the need for them. Otherwise, they cannot be provided.
I firmly believe the forerunner to all drug abuse is the abuse of alcohol and glue, both of which are legally available, and we must come to grips with that fact. My friend was very active in the Pioneer Total Abstinence Association and we ran an annual pioneer dance. With the advent of the liberal agenda, some said we would have to allow pioneers and friends to attend. When the dances ceased, my friend said to me, "We started with pioneers, then it was pioneers and friends and now we have neither pioneers nor friends", and that is what happened. We dropped to the lowest common denominator to facilitate those who did not want to live up to our standards.
This brings me back to the system of education, because the points system is designed towards failure. A child reaches a standard which is probably higher than that attained by his or her teacher; but when he or she does not get the desired number of points we say that he or she failed, but that is not the case. The boy or girl reached a far higher standard of education than that which the teacher reached when he or she left college because the standard was not nearly as high then. We must create a system of education which encourages people to be successful.
A large percentage of road accidents are caused by prescribed medication, which has the same effect as alcohol. We must realise there is a culture of legal and illegal drugs, but we must first work on the abuse of prescribed drugs which we can control.
I do not agree that unemployment and social exclusion — two phrases which are often bandied about — are to blame for the drug problem; but it is ridiculous that a person must be a certain age or a year out of work before he or she can avail of FÁS and other schemes and that one cannot participate a second year. There should be a system in which every school-leaver must work in State employment. If they only cleaned a stretch of road each day, that would be enough. They would be out in the morning at 8 a.m. until 5 p.m. and, if they only breast-fed a shovel, as the comedian used say, it would help create a work ethic. They could not be out until 3 a.m. or 4 a.m. creating havoc, keeping neighbours awake, dealing in drugs or getting drunk. That system might cost money but it would be worthwhile. It would be work instead of welfare and, as the Gospel states, we must earn our bread with the sweat of our brow. The present system demoralises society.
To come to grips with drugs we must try to create an environment in which people are taught to work. People of my generation were expected to earn a couple of pennies from about the age of ten by minding cattle for a neighbour or weeding a street on a Saturday. If a person did not earn money, he had no pocket money. It was as simple as that.
We should create a system where, depending on their standard of education, young people are encouraged to work or enter training schemes and FÁS courses from an early age. We are approaching the stage when there will be no tradesmen left in Ireland. If we do not create a work ethic and ensure that people are trained according to their abilities, we will go down a slippery slope and be unable to put a stop to the drug problem.
Great value has been placed on youth services. The people involved in providing such services are doing a great job. If the voluntary organisations for which they work were not in existence, I have no doubt that the drug problem would be much worse. However, many of those organisations have the same opinions as me. We should take youth leaders into our confidence and enter discussions with them. We must adopt the old maxim "prevention is better than cure", because if the money spent on fighting drug abuse was spent on our health service it would be the best in the world.
It was reported on radio earlier in the week that a drug addict gave birth to two children who are both dependent on drugs. The health board has now refused to allow her to have her children because she is a drug addict. We must come to grips with the awful problems that exist. We will not do so by using fancy, flowery reports of the kind under discussion which must have cost thousands of pounds to produce. The simple answer is to create jobs and place young offenders in an environment where their full potential can be targeted in the right direction.
I welcome the publication of this report and the debate to which it has given rise in both Houses. Its findings hold up a mirror to the dark, ugly underbelly of the Celtic tiger. If nothing else emerges, I hope that the report, shocking as it is in its findings, will propel us into a higher level of action. It should encourage us to intensify our efforts to reduce the supply and demand for drugs.
Having said that, I welcome the Minister of State, Deputy Moffatt. It is good that he has come to hear the solid words of wisdom uttered by Senator Farrell and the fine contribution made by Senator Jackman. I acknowledge the earlier appearance of the Minister for Health and Children, Deputy Cowen. It is an indication of the importance he attaches to this issue that he saw fit to commence the debate. That gives some grounds for optimism as we confront the shocking findings in this report.
I am satisfied that in recent years Governments have put in place tough legislation to deal with the supply of illegal drugs. There is evidence to suggest that legislation is now being more strenuously and rigidly enforced — a welcome development. However, despite the best efforts of those charged with making drug seizures and preventing the availability of drugs, the findings of this report confirm that Ireland is top of the league in respect of the availability of drugs. Of the 24 countries surveyed recently, it emerged that harmful drugs such as cannabis, ecstasy and heroin are most freely available in Ireland. Of the young people surveyed, 61 per cent stated that cannabis is easily available, 51 per cent stated that ecstasy is easily available and a shocking 20 per cent stated that heroin is easily available. That is the current state of play in respect of the availability of drugs in Ireland despite enhanced efforts to come to terms with their importation and distribution.
The evidence to which I referred must compel us towards greater activity in terms of cutting off the supply of drugs. It confirms our suspicions, based on experience, that this country is awash with illegal drugs. At certain educational establishments, second and third level, drugs are freely available on campus. That must provide grounds for increased activity. I pay tribute to the Garda Síochána for its recent success, to customs officials for the co-operation which now exists between them and the gardaí and the Criminal Assets Bureau. However, despite their efforts, the figures to which I referred illustrate the current state of play. There is no room for complacency.
Returning to the report, I am infinitely disturbed by the attitude of young Irish people to drugs. There appears to be a lack of real understanding of the implications of substance abuse among large numbers of teenagers. For that reason Irish teenagers are singularly vulnerable. Of those surveyed, when compared to their European counterparts 63 per cent fewer Irish teenagers see heavy drinking as a serious risk, 32 per cent fewer see cannabis as a serious risk and 5 per cent fewer see cocaine, crack or ecstasy as serious risks. That is truly shocking and it raises questions about the way we approach this issue through our education system.
I am glad that Senators Jackman and Farrell placed heavy emphasis on education because that is the thrust of my contribution. Experience confirms that other countries which are successfully confronting the drugs problem are using their education systems as a primary weapon in the battle against drugs. It is a proven fact that young people who are self-confident and have a sense of self worth and purpose in life are less likely to drift into drug abuse. They may experiment with drugs but it is a long way from experimentation to addiction. Such people may experiment and decide that drugs are not for them. It is the children who drift into drug abuse about whom I am most concerned.
Schools in other countries work hard to instil in their charges the qualities to which I just referred. By so doing they are directly and indirectly tackling the drug problem. In the formal education received at school and that received at home, in the community and through the media, there should be a stronger emphasis on the prevention and early detection of drug use. Prevention is the key. A self-respecting generation of adults cannot allow its young people to drift aimlessly into addiction and a lifetime of drug taking, with all the implications for their health, their job prospects or any prospect of happiness to which they ought to be entitled. That cannot be allowed to happen easily. Are we to some degree complacent in our attitudes to drinking, for example? Our attitude to drink is telling about the climate which breeds a culture tending toward substance abuse.
We have a fairly accurate picture of the young people who are most at risk. They are to be found mainly, although not solely, in areas of deep social deprivation and in dysfunctional families. It stands to reason that well designed, multi-agency programmes targeted to root out social and economic deprivation will yield positive results. That is what Senator Farrell had in mind when he spoke of the provision of work for young people. Young people should not be allowed to go from school directly onto the dole. Young people should have the option of further training or the prospect of a job. It is difficult to overstate the hopelessness that besets the young people who leave school with no prospect but to draw the dole. That is a poor offering to young people.
Senator Farrell is right to emphasise the importance of work in the community for the long-term unemployed which would allow young people to grow up in an atmosphere where there is a work ethic, where they can see the adults in the community going to work and get a sense of work being an essential part of healthy living.
While legislation is essential, it will not solve the problem alone. We must use well designed and well monitored programmes in areas of high long-term unemployment and high social and economic deprivation. Such an approach would yield results.
We know from experience that a good educational experience is a great protection against drug abuse. The young people who achieve at school and in its related activities are least likely to be caught up in a lifetime of addiction. It follows that young people who drop out of school early or who attend infrequently are already putting themselves at risk. A programme aimed at preventing drug use must first target those with a high level of absenteeism from school and those who drop out early. A shocking report was made available last week about high levels of absenteeism from school in certain parts of Dublin city. I was pleased to read in the newspaper this morning that the Minister for Education and Science has promised urgent, modern, effective and enforceable legislation on truancy so that young people will attend school until at least the age of 16 as required by law.
We should honour the provision in our Constitution to cherish all the nation's children equally. There is something wrong in the schools, the homes or in the community when young people do not want to go to school, particularly primary school. Primary schools which function well are pleasant, creative and challenging places for young people. It is often the schools which are the safest places for young people. As a former second level teacher, I acknowledge that there is a great amount of pressure at that level. However, primary schools are pleasant and good places of learning when they are organised properly and the programmes are delivered properly. It is not enough to put legislation in place which will require young people to go to school. They should go to school because they benefit from the experience.
The best approach is put in place a sufficiency of home school liaison teachers who will help to create the conditions in which parents will encourage their children to go to school because they will benefit from their children's attendance. This will encourage the parents to become actively involved in and supportive of their children's education at primary level. That is the key to many other benefits which could flow from that measure. Where there is a good home school liaison scheme in place it enhances greatly school attendance and performance there. More than anything else we need specially trained teachers who can relate fully to the parents and actively link the parents to their children's education.
It is a sad fact that in many cases the problems start with the parents. If parents are to become part of the solution they cannot continue to be part of the problem. This is the key if we are to reach young vulnerable people in areas of high absenteeism.
All parents need to be alert to the early warning signs of drugs. There is nothing as devastating as the anguish of parents who find out for the first time that a child is into drugs and, for one reason or another, they have not detected it. Their anguish can be acute. There are easily identifiable symptoms and parents need to be alert to have warning well in advance when their children are drifting in the direction of addiction. There is an overwhelming need to link parents into drug prevention programmes.
In areas where there is a high level of absenteeism it is not enough to put in place a good home school liaison scheme. The schools need an injection of specialist staff — more remedial teachers, a more up to date psychological service and a good counselling service. Investment at that level would pay high dividends and would avert a lot of the money being spent on young people who have done irreversible damage to themselves, their families and their communities. Such an approach would pay dividends because we would be taking early preventative action. Investment at that level would pay huge dividends in the long run because we would be acting early enough and on the basis of prevention. I will speak to the Minister for Education and Science about this issue when an opportunity arises.
I wish to refer to the increasing number of young people being expelled from school. We must confront this issue, because once a child is expelled from school their life drifts into chaos in no time and they are vulnerable to problems, including drug taking. I am also concerned about teenage drinking. The prevalence of teenage drinking creates a culture into which drug abuse slips. Very often teenage drinking is the first step on the road to hard drugs. We must seriously tackle the problem of teenage drinking. There is a law but it is not enforced. Gardaí have told me it is not enforceable because we do not have a national ID system. Why do we not have a national ID system if we are serious about tackling this problem? If I was the Minister for Justice, Equality and Law Reform and found young people being served alcohol night after night on a premises, I would close it for a couple of days or a week. That would have sufficient economic consequences to bring the pub owners and their staff to their senses. We need not put them out of business, but we should give them a shock.
It is a disgrace that we do not have proper modern juvenile justice legislation. We still operate under juvenile justice legislation enacted in 1908, before the foundation of the State, despite the fact that almost eight years ago a Select Committee, of the other House of which I was Chairman, prepared a comprehensive report outlining the need for modern juvenile legislation. That report has not been acted on and we await modern juvenile justice legislation.
The Rainbow Government addressed itself to the issue but did not introduce a Bill. How can we expect young people to grow up as responsible young citizens if we do not put in place a proper legislative framework under which they may grow and develop? It is a scandal that we have not introduced legislation. I urge this Government to introduce modern juvenile justice legislation without delay so that at least we may be able to put in place a legislative programme and create a healthy culture in which our children may grow up.
I could not agree more with Senator Quill's remarks on health education, school attendance, the criminal justice system and the fact we do not have juvenile justice legislation. Much work was done by the previous Administration and the Select Committee which was established in drawing up proposals. Unfortunately, legislation has not been brought before the House and we must work with an outdated Act from 1908.
I am delighted to have the opportunity to speak on the annual report of the European Union Monitoring Services. It is ironic that we are debating this report after one of the largest hauls of cannabis — £3 million worth — involving much painstaking Garda activity. Two of those arrested and charged were allowed to go free as a result of a mix up in legislative procedures and responsibilities. Ludicrously, their passports were returned to them and they have fled the country, which anybody in their right mind would have expected, and are not available to be recharged. It is unacceptable that this process was stymied by a foul-up which should not have happened, considering the seriousness of the issue.
The establishment of the European Union Drugs Monitoring Centre in Lisbon in 1994 was a valuable development and we are participants through the Health Research Board. This is the second report we have debated concerning findings on the drug problem, drug and alcohol addiction and drugs such as cannabis, Ecstasy, amphetamines, heroin, cocaine and so on. It is valuable that we look at this report because we must deal with a number of aspects of it, the most important being the question of drug supply. There must be co-operation between the various agencies here and on mainland Europe. All drugs, including cannabis, heroin and Ecstasy, are imported into Ireland as no sector of the community is involved in producing drugs, apart from cannabis which is produced on very small scale. It is extremely important that we maintain good relations with Europol and with other EU member states so that we can monitor the movement of drugs through other countries and prevent them reaching Ireland. From that point of view, it is important we look at this problem in a global context.
There has been an increase in the level of drug abuse in virtually every European country. The use of cannabis and various amphetamines is on the increase. Heroin use comprises a small part only of drug use. Nevertheless, heroin is a serious problem and results in much misery and crime and impacts far beyond the numbers involved.
The only good news in the report is that there seems to be a slight decrease in HIV infection in the EU. That is due to a greater awareness of the spread of infection through sharing needles, which was a major problem in this country. Heroin use was almost a social gregarious thing in the capital city.
A number of other serious matters have been revealed as a result of recent surveys. The European school survey on alcohol and other drugs found that of the 2,000 surveyed, Ireland was found to have the highest level of drug abuse of 16 year olds in year. Our young teenage population is more prone to drug abuse, including alcohol and other drugs. The findings showed that cannabis and alcohol were used, as well as Ecstasy and a small amount of heroin. It is alarming that this most recent report has shown us to be top of the list in the EU in terms of being prone to drug abuse. The mean age at which youngsters became involved in drugs is lower than that in most other countries.
An OECD report published this month shows that Ireland is almost bottom of the list in terms of literacy and that we have a serious problem in this regard. Some 25 per cent of the adult population or 200,000 people, experience literacy problems. Recent surveys conducted in Clondalkin and Ballyfermot which were in the news indicate there is a serious school attendance problem in deprived areas. The health research board of the European Monitoring Centre for drugs produced startling figures in 1994 to the effect that, of those abusing heroin, 63 per cent left school before the age of 15 and 87 per cent were unemployed. Statistics paint a picture of Ireland having a large youth population a proportion of which leaves school at an early age, is exposed to drugs and becomes addicted, and that this is associated with lack of employment opportunities. They also show a serious literacy problem which has not been addressed. While the Celtic tiger benefits those at the top and middle of the pyramid, there is a subclass of people who have no access to the benefits of the booming economy and that must be addressed.
There is a problem with children getting into trouble and some say it is their fault or that of their parents. However, it should be remembered that every crime committed to feed a heroin habit has an impact on the wider community. While the abuse may take place in disadvantaged areas, it has an impact on the wider community in terms of people's homes being burgled, handbags being snatched, various forms of larceny, increased police presence, extra prison spaces, more drugs rehabilitation centres, etc. It has a ripple effect on the community and the taxpayer picks up the tab in the end. I am concerned about young Irish people whose lives are being destroyed by these drugs. We do not seem to be able to get our act together to deal with it.
Considerable progress has been made in the past 12 months in dealing with the drugs barons, more or less since the death of Veronica Guerin. It was only then that pressure was put on the authorities to introduce tough measures for policing and detecting and a comprehensive form of treatment. The task force on drugs also produced its report and £10 million has been allocated towards that. Some £20 million has been allocated to youth service development, especially in the area of education and programmes to deal with children at risk. Significant gaps still exist in the operation of the service at almost every level. It was shown they exist at the policing level, for example, when two people charged with possession of £3 million of cannabis were released on a technicality because of messy administrative procedures which were not properly adhered to. That must not happen.
I welcome the establishment of the Criminal Assets Bureau, the product of the finest legislation we have introduced in terms of dealing with the problem. It has had significant success to the extent that most of the major criminals now operate from the Continent rather than from Ireland. They have been pushed out and are afraid to return. However, I am worried they are beginning to regroup, establish new outlets and recruit new personnel for dealing in drugs here. They are beginning to recover from the onslaught against them in the previous 12 months and are putting together a new operation, which is dangerous. The increasing quantities of drugs seized is testimony to that. It is clear that access for the purposes of supply is being maintained and expanded.
I would like if the assets of drug pushers seized by the Criminal Assets Bureau were put in a special fund to be used exclusively for dealing with the victims of drug abuse. The community would then see that those who create such misery would pay for it by having the proceeds of their crimes ploughed back into the community to its benefit. We need that type of symbolism to help us believe that criminals are not benefiting from the proceeds of their criminal activity but are suffering by having their assets seized and set aside for community development and treatment facilities. It should not pose a problem as a similar procedure is already being used by local authorities whereby a certain percentage of motor tax receipts is being used for local government purposes. Why can something similar not be done with the money seized by the Criminal Assets Bureau?
The health boards have begun to get their act together after many years of neglect in dealing with the drugs epidemic. I am speaking specifically in the context of the heroin problem in Dublin where the worst of the drug abuse takes place. The correct approach is being adopted where local communities are consulted and the principle of local areas addressing local problems is put into practice. This means that if addicts in an area seek treatment, they do not have to go outside the area because they will be treated in local satellite clinics. That would surmount the tremendous suspicion that the Eastern Health Board is foisting a disproportionate amount of responsibility for dealing with the problem on specific sections of the community. I want to see the central and satellite clinics operating effectively and this can only be done through consultation with local residents' associations and not proceeding with methadone dispensation treatment without the knowledge of local residents. They get very annoyed if they believe people with serious drugs problems are being imposed on their area.
Prescription is another bone of contention. There is no practice of general practitioners prescribing to chemists in the locality. A number of chemists have developed their operations in such a way that large numbers of addicts go to their premises for methadone. This is highly unsatisfactory from the point of view of local residents because large numbers of people are hanging around causing huge inconvenience and indulging in petty crime by selling some of the dispensed methadone. Gardaí are often present to monitor and regulate the dispensing of methadone. If all chemists co-operated GPs' prescriptions could be made out to the local chemist. If this were done, waves would not be created in the community.
I have often been critical of how the prison service operates in relation to drugs and other matters. However, the greatest concentration of drug addiction is in prisons. It is a captive audience and there should be intensive, appropriate treatment programmes for each addict when they enter prison. The Minister should look at the approach taken by the Department of Education and Science on education services. Local vocational education committees are responsible for education in the prison system. Why should local health boards not be responsible for drug treatment in prisons? That is the only way to achieve an effective system but we are not doing so. It is a simple solution. The same procedure, facilities and approach which operates on the outside can also operate inside prisons.
Drug abuse is a growing problem. The Oireachtas's response should be to appoint a Minister of State with no other responsibility but to tackle the problem of drug abuse.
I welcome this report. Unfortunately, drugs are becoming a problem in every corner of Ireland. We constantly hear of our national problem but this report gives us a wider view of how effective our policies are in tackling the problem.
The main objective of the EU report is to provide policy makers with information so that they can compare and contrast the effectiveness of policies in different European countries. The main findings of the report are that cannabis is the most commonly used illegal drug in the EU, with 5 to 30 per cent of the population having tried it at some stage. Amphetamines are the second most commonly used illegal drugs. Despite the fact that less than 1 per cent of the population has tried heroin, it has caused the greatest social, economic, financial and mental problems for those involved. Ecstasy and LSD are the most popular misused drugs among young people. Heroin misuse is largely confined to Dublin and other major urban areas. Cannabis and Ecstasy are a nationwide problem.
In tackling the drug problem we must deal with the supply and prevention issues. The problem can be related to the principle of supply and demand; prevention can be used to reduce demand. The Garda must be congratulated for battling relentlessly against those who accrue vast wealth at the expense of the most vulnerable and, very often, socially dysfunctional people. There have been important measures introduced nationally and internationally to deal with the parasites involved in the drug trade. The word 'parasite' is not strong enough but I could not use a more appropriate term in this House.
As a nurse, I have met young children whose parents are drug addicts. Very often there is horrendous physical, emotional and psychological neglect of these children. Some parents are spaced out of their minds while, supposedly, looking after children. I was 27 years of age before being offered drugs. That offer was made in a children's hospital in Dublin by a 14 year old child who volunteered to get me hash if I wanted it. I do not know if it is laughable or the saddest of situations when a 14 year old child offers drugs to a 27 year old nurse.
One of the most upsetting things I experienced as a midwife, was to watch a newborn baby suffering withdrawal symptoms because its mother was a drug addict. For anyone who has never experienced it, the child is like an alcoholic going through the DTs. A day old baby shakes and jerks from one end of a cot to the other. It is not a pleasant sight. Drug addicted mothers should be made to watch their babies for five minutes. Everything must be done to deal with the parasites and drug barons.
We must welcome the Proceeds of Crime Act, 1996, which enables the Criminal Assets Bureau to freeze and seize assets procured as a result of crime, and the Criminal Justice (Drug Trafficking) Act, 1996, which provides for periods of detention of up to seven days. I also welcome the proposed changes which will allow for a ten year minimum sentence for drug trafficking. These measures send a clear message to drug barons that this Government will be tough on criminals. The recent large seizures of drugs will worry those involved in drug trafficking and they know that Ireland is no longer a safe haven. The Garda can only be effective as a result of action at national, European and international level. However, so long as there is a demand, there will be supply. There must be a more local emphasis involving the family and local community to deal with the demand.
The EU report indicates that young Irish people are near the top of the European table as regards using tobacco, alcohol and illegal drugs, such as cannabis and Ecstasy. Why do young people get involved in drugs? The argument is that there are increased pressures on young people at school, such as the points system and the need to get into college. This is rubbish and an easy way of passing the buck. There are pressures but there were pressures 60 and 70 years ago when there were ten to 12 children per family in a one bedroom house, no money and, at times, very little food.
Our drug problem is a legacy of today's culture. The increasing movement of people nationally and internationally and the media make people more aware of what is going on. Awareness leads to curiosity. Peer group pressure and curiosity are two of the common reasons why young people initially take drugs. Often young people will dabble in drugs for the hell of it, often they are introduced to them by a friend. It is just a bit of fun when out for the night with the gang. Boredom appears to play a large part in encouraging children to experiment with drugs, particularly in urban areas. Every rural community in Ireland possesses sporting facilities, and yet boredom is seen as an excuse. Sport is a life saver in rural and urban areas. If love of sport is instilled in a child from an early age it leads to a healthy competitiveness as well as a keen spirit, helping to develop that child's character in a positive way. Involvement in sport gives children confidence above all else. Lack of confidence makes any young person vulnerable to peer group pressure and bullying. Often they will turn to alcohol to achieve confidence, but in fact it demeans them as a person and makes them even more vulnerable. When children have low self esteem they are an easy target for anyone who wishes to exploit them.
In Ireland 42 per cent of the population is under 25 years of age. Tackling substance abuse must therefore be a priority. There is no point pontificating about the harm these substances do. What must be done is alter the attitude of young people by channelling their energy in a positive way. I commend groups such as Foróige and the various other voluntary groups for young people. Foróige is for children between 12 and 18 years of age, the most vulnerable age when discussing drugs, alcohol and tobacco. As a product of Foróige myself, I know it gives young people the opportunity to express themselves and develop their talents which would be left hidden otherwise.
Parents have a major role and must be involved in this stage of their child's life, especially now when both parents work and leave children with child minders. It is not good enough to make voluntary workers responsible for children. Parents must hold some responsibility. It is irresponsible of parents to allow a child to sit in front of a television for hours on end. Parents must be encouraged to become more involved in their children's upbringing.
In large, deprived urban areas, where young people have no positive community involvement and where drug pushing is commonplace, avoidance of drug abuse is more difficult. As a rural Senator, I can say we do not have a drug problem as widespread as in the cities. We do, however, have a problem with substance abuse. A North Eastern Health Board survey published on 25 November contains the replies to a confidential questionnaire of 1,516 adolescents from 21 schools. This research showed alcohol and tobacco consumption was higher than the national average, with 26 per cent of 13 year olds having tried both. This figure increased to 81 per cent of adolescents by age 17 years. The survey showed that young people who smoked and drank were more frequently offered drugs, generally by a friend. Those involved who had tried drugs gave their reasons as boredom, family problems, experimentation, sociability and peer influence. Young people need their energies to be channelled in a more positive way to avoid these problems.
We can leave the authorities to deal with curtailing the supply of drugs at national level, but there must be more emphasis on parents, teachers and community workers to deal with demand. If demand is reduced, supply will reduce.
Coming at the tail end of the debate I do not intend to take up my full amount of time. Neither do I wish to repeat the words spoken by the previous speakers or have a go at the Government for not wiping out the drugs problem in the first six months of office. Let us be clear, every child will be offered the opportunity to use and abuse drugs. Anyone who thinks their children will not be offered drugs does not know today's world.
There is a view that the supply of drugs can be controlled. The European Union has taken some daft approaches to dealing with this problem. The most amazing of all was they were going to ask the drug growing farmers of Columbia to grow carrots instead. That was the most amazing response from Brussels so far. Even if we were to control the supply of drugs coming along the traditional routes all that would happen would be an increase in designer drugs. There is no future in attempting to address the drugs issue by controlling supply. There is a future, as Senator Leonard said, in dealing with demand.
Trying to fool, terrorise or mislead young people about the dangers of drugs is a non-starter. The dangers will not prevent young people trying them. Young people do not believe drugs are killers; it is time we told them not all drugs are killers and not all drugs are equally dangerous. It is time we told them the truth: that cannabis is less harmful than tobacco, but there is a vested interest in the world-wide tobacco industry to ensure cannabis will not be legalised. I do not think cannabis should be legalised, but people should know the truth about it. It is no more dangerous than tobacco. It is less addictive. It is also important to state that tobacco is more addictive than heroin. Young people should be told these things so they learn to understand drugs.
The biggest issue to examine is the great killer of all drugs, heroin. There has been a debate about legalisation of drugs and the criminalisation of the people who use them. I ask the Minister examine the possibility of legislation which would make heroin a controlled substance rather than legalise it. There have been successful experiments in recent years, particularly outside Liverpool, where a number of heroin addicts were treated by the local health service with a daily supply of heroin. All the addicts were employed in areas which included the Civil Service, the medical area and clerical jobs and they lived what appeared to be a normal life. It is time we looked at the possibility of decriminalising heroin and making it a controlled substance like most other drugs.
In my office I have an advertisement from the German Bayer pharmaceutical company — perhaps the biggest pharmaceutical company in the world — dating from 1907 advertising heroin as a cure for influenza, colds and other feverish ailments. This shows how times can change. People did not realise the dangers of heroin at that time. I am not aware of any medicinal application for heroin.
The crime which revolves around heroin could be demolished tomorrow morning if it were made a controlled rather than an illegal substance. It requires guts on behalf of the Government to take this on board, but the only reason there is a huge criminal industry based on the supply of heroin is because of the normal laws of economics pertaining to supply and demand. We should look at the question of supply in the context of heroin being a controlled rather than an illegal substance. It could be controlled by the medical profession or some other relevant body. This would immediately pull the rug from under the gangsters and mobsters who are terrorising this and other cities, putting lives at risk, killing people and offering drugs in the worst possible manner and from which people are dying. I ask that this be carefully examined.
I agree with what Senator Leonard said about focusing on young people, something the Minister also referred to. Two or three times in his speech the Minister spoke of the necessity of this focus beginning at primary level and I welcome this. It is only in the last 18 months that Governments have begun to see the importance of dealing with this issue at primary school. We have come across situations of drugs being made available to senior primary school children in order to get them hooked. They are trying substances about which they know nothing. When it is offered it may not be called heroin; but whatever it is called in the street it is being offered in patches, injections or for smoking. Young people do not understand what they are being offered and they should be given the facts and told the truth. We should not try to deal with the issue by scaring them. If scaring worked then nobody would have climbed Mount Everest, stolen a fast car, bungy jumped or risked their lives in the million different ways which people do every day. Risk is attractive and people will be drawn towards it and reference to it is not the way to educate young people about drugs. We should tell them the truth and allow them control their lives in dealing with drugs. We should inform them so that they have the power, authority, confidence and self-esteem to deal with the matter and say no.
One survey said one out of three young people have taken cannabis at some stage during their teen years, confirming the fact that two out of three have rejected it, while others may not have admitted trying it. It can be taken for granted that every child will have been offered drugs during the course of their teen years. Whether it is Ecstasy tablets, cannabis or something stronger and more dangerous is irrelevant. We should inform young people so they understand the difference between drugs rather than saying they are all the same. The truth about and dangers associated with each drug should be spelled out.
We should also look at gateway drugs, whether they are alcohol and tobacco or cannabis and Ecstasy. It is untrue to tell young people that one drug leads to another. It is true that I have never seen a heroin addict who was not also a tobacco smoker. However, it does not necessarily follow that one leads to another. Young people need the facts to enable them make choices and take on peer pressure. This requires a strong sense of self-esteem and self-confidence. We need to focus on demand. Those who want drugs and are buying them, thus pushing up sales, are the people we need to reach.
We need to look carefully at treatment. I strongly favour local neighbourhood treatment centres. We should not establish major drug treatment centres in two or three areas in a large city such as Dublin. People should get treatment and deal with their problems in their own neighbourhood. It is a shame and a poor reflection on this and previous Governments, and on all of us, that we do not have the facilities and resources to deal with the number of people who wish to avail of detoxification and other treatments to beat their addiction. Much can be done, but people need to be imaginative and creative and deal with the issues which have been taboo. The main issue is that of decriminalising, which is different from legalising, heroin to make it a controlled substance. We need to carefully examine such issues and see where the criminals fit into such change. Criminals work on the terror of people who will do anything to get a fix and who lose all sense of balance and judgment to get their daily dose of heroin. If this could be supplied by a controlled legal source, parallel to detoxification and treatment, we would have a far better chance of success in beating the drugs problem and eliminating the interwoven fabric of crime which surrounds the drug scene in Ireland and Europe.
I thank Senators who have contributed to the debate. I share their concern about the use of illicit and legal drugs by young people. As the report of the European monitoring centre indicates, we must be cautious when comparing figures from one country with another because of variations in data collection systems. However, this does not avoid the fact that many young people appear to accept the use of cannabis, ecstasy, tobacco and alcohol as normal. It is incumbent on us to equip young people with the wherewithal to make responsible choices about their lifestyles.
The Minister mentioned that various educational preventative initiatives had been undertaken by the Department's health promotion unit in conjunction with the Department of Education, such as the On My Own Two Feet programme which commenced in 1994 and which has been very successful in second level schools. One thousand two hundred teachers have been trained in delivering the programme to date. This year a further 64 training programmes are being run. The basic philosophy behind the programme is to give young people the confidence to deal with the decisions they have to make about their lifestyles. At primary level there is an initiative under way, including an information booklet for school managers, parents and teachers; information awareness seminars for teachers, parents and others, liaison with local community groups to involve them in the process of raising awareness about drugs and in-service training programmes for teachers. At community level, the programme Drug Questions — Local Answers has been running for some time and provides community based training for health and education professionals, Garda, youth workers, voluntary workers and agencies and others interested in drug related problems which they encounter through their work.
The Government has given a new impetus to the structures put in place by the previous Government by extending the brief of the Cabinet subcommittee to encompass the question of social inclusion. This will ensure the co-ordination of activities in the areas of drugs misuse, local development and anti-poverty strategies to allow for a more focused approach. The 1996 Government decision also emphasised the need for demand reduction measures to be put in place in each health board area outside Dublin. Following these decisions, my Department instructed each health board to put in place a range of measures suitable to their area aimed at reducing the demand for drugs. A number of steps have been taken by the boards to implement these decisions, including the employment of education officers, community workers and counsellors, the development of databases on drug use and increasing education and prevention measures.
I am conscious of the absence of hard facts about the extent of drugs misuse. For that reason health boards are concentrating on developing databases which are relevant and capable. I am satisfied that health boards are aware of the need to have a suitable range of services in place in order to respond to those who are misusing drugs. It is important to remember that benchmark figures have been established through the EMC and ESPAD surveys. This means we can repeat such surveys in coming years to establish whether the problem continues to grow or our efforts at education and prevention are bearing fruit.
With regard to treatment in the community, I am aware that large numbers of patients can attend a particular pharmacy to have their methadone dispensed. The review group which examined methadone treatment services for opiate misusers has made recommendations on this issue and these recommendations will include placing controls on the use of drugs and the numbers of drug misusers attending any one general practitioner or pharmacy. The group's report is being printed at present and will be available in the near future. A group has been established by the Eastern Health Board to drive forward the implementation of this report.
It is agreed that the solution to the drug problem must be looked at and addressed in a wider social context. That is why the Cabinet subcommittee dealing with drug misuse is called the Sub-committee on Social Inclusion. No Government sector, on its own, can be effective in tackling the problem. It has already been pointed out that the Health Research Board's figures for treated drug misuse clearly identified the links between drugs misuse and social deprivation. The 1995 report showed that of the 3,600 cases treated in the greater Dublin area, 63 per cent had left school before the official school leaving age of 15 years and 87 per cent were unemployed. For these reasons, drug prevention and rehabilitation strategies must include policies aimed at equipping people with the necessary skills to make informed choices about the use of drugs in their lives. More importantly, social policies must provide the environment where these people have the ability to choose the healthy option. Social policies must encourage young people to remain at school and to acquire the relevant skills to achieve their optimum potential as worthwhile members of society. They must aim at providing employment for people particularly in inner city areas where unemployment figures remain high.
The issue of decriminalisation of drugs is frequently raised; indeed, it was raised by Senator O'Toole today. Government decisions of February 1996 include a clear statement that no steps should be taken to legalise or decriminalise the use of soft drugs such as cannabis. This Government's position has not changed on that issue. I disagree with Senator O'Toole; I do not believe that controlling drugs such as heroin would limit the amount of illegal heroin being imported to, and distributed throughout, the country.
The figures in the EMC report give us all food for thought. We should not fall into the trap of overstating the problem, neither should we be complacent. We must face up to the problem and respond to it. Much work is already being done in responding to the drug misuse problem. However, we have some way to go. I assure the House that the Minister and I will continue with our efforts to ensure that strategies are put in place aimed at preventing drugs misuse whenever possible. In addition, those who require access to drug treatment will be in a position to get it without delay.
All Senators referred to the need for a strong emphasis to be placed on prevention. I agree with that; the education and prevention programmes which are in place are key to reducing the drug misuse problem.
Senator Costello suggested that health boards should be made responsible for the provision of drug treatment services in prison. At present, the Eastern Health Board consultant psychiatrists provide sessions in prison and work closely with the Department of Justice, Equality and Law Reform on improving services to prisoners.
Senator Jackman noted that priority areas are well funded and resources but others are not. Since 1992, funding has been provided to all health boards to provide education and treatment services. Each board has a co-ordinating committee on drugs misuse similar to that which exists in the Mid-Western Health Board. This committee identifies the needs of the region and the appropriate action to be taken.
Senator Farrell spoke about the abuse of legal substances such as glue and similar products. Under the Child Care Act, it is illegal for anyone to sell those products to young people if they know they will be abused. Persons knowingly selling these products can be fined or even imprisoned. The Senator spoke about the alternatives to drug misuse; local drug task forces have established priorities in regard to those.
I listened with interest to Senator Leonard's description of her personal experience as a nurse and midwife. If anything said here today emphasised the tragedy of the drug problem, it was the Senator's description of dealing with babies born to drug abusing mothers. She spoke about the desperate condition those babies were in as a result. That epitomises the tragedy of this problem.
The Government is determined to put in place strategies which will prevent, as far as possible, drugs being imported here. There has been considerable success in this area recently. The Government will continue the fight against drug distribution on the streets and will do everything possible to provide treatment to the victims of drug abuse, particularly heroin abuse.
A major effort is being made, which has been successful to date, to confine the heroin problem to the areas in which it currently exists. In cities such as Galway, owing to Garda surveillance and intelligence, we have succeed by and large in keeping heroin out.
Since I took up office, I have had occasion to speak to children as young as 12 years of age. It is a shocking tragedy to think that some of those young children are taking heroin and are the victims of drug abuse. Drug abuse adds to the possibility of those children being abused in many other ways because of their vulnerability. It is tragic to meet children of 12 to 15 years of age who are victims of drug abuse. It behoves us all to put every possible effort into getting to grips with this scourge. I compliment Senators who contributed to this debate, and I hope it will add to the ongoing effort to end this problem.
When is it proposed to sit again?
It is proposed to meet next Wednesday at 12 noon.