CityWide welcomes appointment of Roisín Shortall as a minister responsible for drugs

3 May 2011

This story appeared in the printed version of the Irish Examiner Friday, April 22, 2011

COMMUNITY drug groups have welcomed the appointment of Roisín Shortall as a minister responsible for drugs. But CityWide, an umbrella group of community drug projects, said it was a "shame" it had taken so long to assign a minister to the brief. "We only hope it is not a reflection of a lack of priority towards drugs in the Government," said CityWide co-ordinator Daithí Doolan. "There is a commitment in the Programme for the Government to give added impetus to the drugs strategy and I hope Roisín Shortall applies this focus."

The Department of Health confirmed that the National Drugs Strategy (NDS) and the Office of the Minister for Drugs (OMD) will come under the remit of Ms Shortall on May 1. Ms Shortall is minister of state at the Department of Health with responsibility for Primary Care.

Mr Doolan said Ms Shortall had formerly sat on the Ballymun Local Drugs Task Force. "I worked with her there and I hope she uses that experience. She represents Finglas and Ballymun, two areas which have been ravaged by drugs." But he said there were challenges ahead for her and that she needed to "prove" the Government was serious about giving greater priority to the drugs area.

The NDS and the OMD has been located in the Department of Community, Equality and Gaeltacht Affairs. That department was broken up by the Government. The equality and gaeltacht briefs were quickly transferred elsewhere, but the drugs brief was left in limbo. It is not yet clear how much time Ms Shortall will be able to give to the area given her Health commitments. "Obviously, we would like to have a senior minister at the Cabinet table. We don't have that, but Roisín has a great track record," said Mr Doolan. He said her main role in developing health care in the community tied in with the treatment, rehabilitation and education arms of the drugs strategy. The drugs brief will be expanded to include alcohol when the new National Substance Misuse Strategy is eventually published.

 

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