Brian O'Shea
Ceist:510 Mr. O'Shea asked the Minister for Community, Rural and Gaeltacht Affairs the breakdown by area of the 2,225 people using opiates outside the capital; and if he will make a statement on the matter. [26403/03]
Written Answers. - National Drugs Strategy.
The national advisory committee on drugs, for which my Department has responsibility, published a study on the prevalence of opiate misuse in Ireland last May. The Deputy should note that this is the first formal estimate of the number of opiate users undertaken since the 1996 study carried out by Dr. Catherine Comiskey which used the same methodology. However, the 1996 study, which arrived at an estimate of 13,461, estimated prevalence for Dublin only.
The latest study estimates that there were 14,452 people using opiates in Ireland in 2001. The estimated figure for Dublin is 12,456 with 2,225 people using opiates outside the capital. I should make clear that the Dublin and outside Dublin figures do not add up to the national total as all three figures are the result of separate statistical calculations and are performed independently of each other.
The estimate is based on statistics provided by three data sources: central drug treatment list, national Garda study on drugs, crime and related criminal activity and hospital in-patient inquiry database. I regret to tell the Deputy that I cannot make available the breakdown he has requested for number of reasons, due primarily to confidentiality and statistical considerations.
First, the methodology used determines a prevalence estimate by identifying the number of individuals in each data source and the overlap of those appearing in one, two or three data sets. The numbers are then modelled using a statistical technique to provide an estimate. However, the numbers by area cited outside of Dublin are so small that there is a distinct possibility that individuals could be identified and the NACD have both ethical and data protection duties to consider in this regard. Second, estimates cannot be provided with the same degree of reliability on a regional basis outside of Dublin due to small numbers involved in each region. Accordingly, I regret I cannot provide the Deputy with the breakdown he has requested.