Anti-drugs activists seek designated minister

A group of more than 100 anti-drug demonstrators marched on the Dáil today to protest at the Government's drugs policy.

The demonstrators want the Government to reinstate a full-time Minister with responsibility for Drugs.

They also called for more resources to be made available to implement local drug task force plans in Dublin and plans for the regional drug task forces outside the city.

Fergus McCabe of the group Citywide said that Ireland is now dealing with a polydrug crisis with heroin, cocaine and the appearance of crack cocaine on the streets.

"You could legitimately argue from the evidence out there that we have a bigger drugs problem now than we had ten years ago," he said.

Mr McCabe said there is a "lack of faith in the political urgency" being given to the national drug strategy and called on the Government to reprioritise the drugs issue.

"We think the partnership process is good, but its not good if its not being implemented," he added.

Mr McCabe was the only community representative on a Government committee set up to co-ordinate local and regional drugs task forces before he resigned last December amid "serious concerns" over the direction of the National Drugs Strategy (NDS).

In a letter to community representatives on the reasons for his resignation, Mr McCabe said he no longer believed the Government "is responding to the ongoing drugs crisis with the priority it so badly needs".