The number of heroin users in Dublin continues to grow – with an extra 642 new drug-injectors seeking help last year from one of the country’s leading charities working with drug users.
Merchants Quay Ireland’s annual report today will reveal the overall numbers attending its drugs services last year rose by 9% compared with the previous year.
Commenting ahead of the report, Merchants Quay Ireland (MQI) director Tony Geoghegan said, despite the increased numbers of drug users presenting for help, the recession-hit charity had made great efforts to cut back on spending.
"We significantly pared back our costs in relation to areas like administration, research, training and other back office functions while at the same time agreeing new working arrangements with staff to ensure that we could develop new much needed initiatives for our service users."
Source: June Monroe, The Irish Examiner, 24/09/2010