Madam, – In the aftermath of the result of the inquest into Gerry Ryan’s death, what is needed most is a realisation of the extent of this problem of cocaine, and other substance, abuses in our society.
Substance abuse is a scourge in our communities the length and breadth of the country.
Mandatory drug testing in the workplace will do little or nothing to address this problem. As the UK Independent Inquiry into Drug Testing at Work concluded, “There is no clear evidence that drug testing at work has a significant deterrent effect”. Resources would be more wisely spent on education programmes in workplaces pointing out the adverse implications of substance abuse and using the examples of high profile individuals, including Gerry Ryan, to highlight the learning. – Yours, etc,