Citywide Drugs Crisis Campaign Press release 22/10/2013

Government has abanded our community by abandoning the National Drug Strategy.

According to the representatives of the communities most affected by the Drugs Crisis, who have been leaders in responding to the crisis over the last 20 years. “There has been a gradual and continuing decline in political will to address the drugs problem over the last number of years, but it is now at crisis point where local communities cannot take any more” according to Anna Quigley of Citywide Drugs Crisis Campaign.

Community groups and representatives, supported by the National Voluntary Drugs Sector, are holding a campaign meeting tomorrow October 23rd in the Gresham Hotel in Dublin from 10a.m. to 1p.m. to highlight the withdrawal of government support in addressing the drugs crisis in our communities.

According to Anna Quigley “All the evidence confirms that our communities are now coping with an increasingly complex and chaotic drug problem that includes a mix of legal drugs, illegal drugs and alcohol. Within this mix, there are different patterns of drug use in different areas and for different age groups but there is one common thread –the enduring link between disadvantage and serious community drug problems.”

In the 1996 Rabbitte Report, Government committed to a partnership approach to tackling our devastating community drugs problem. Drugs Task Forces were set up to deliver a response to meet local needs through a partnership approach of all state agencies and departments, with a strong National Co-ordinating structure in place to support the local work.   Despite many evaluations showing the effectiveness of this approach, both the Community and Voluntary Drug sector representatives are clear that Government, and in particular the  Dept. of Health, has now effectively abandoned this partnership and as a result is abandoning the communities that are most affected.

“For the first time since the Rabbitte Report in 1996, there has been no national drugs  co-ordinating committee in place for most of the past year and proposals for a new committee are continuously being put on hold” says Anna Quigley.

While the Government has announced its intention to extend the remit of the Drugs Task Forces to include alcohol, its entire focus has been on legislation and regulation in relation to alcohol, and there has been absolutely no discussion about structures, supports and resources that need to be put in place on the ground to address alcohol issues in our communities.  

Severe cuts over the last 6 years have resulted in a 37% reduction in the Drugs Initiatives Budget between 2008 and 2014, (this compares to 7.1% cut in overall government spending), and have  undermined and put at risk the work of existing services as they try to change and adapt to meet needs on the ground. This level of cuts has also meant  that actions previously agreed with Government as part of the National Drugs Strategy  cannot be implemented “we know what we need to do, but there is no political will to do it” according to Tony Geoghegan, speaking on behalf of the National Voluntary Drugs Sector.

Earlier this month, Minister James Reilly stated that: 
“Drugs misue continues to be one of the most significant cghallenges facing our country. It is highly destructive and has devastating effects on individuals, families, communities and society in general."

We now call on Minister Reilly and Minister Alex White to immediately convene a meeting of the National Co-ordinating Committee to begin responding to our current drugs crisis.