THE FINE Gael candidate in the upcoming Limerick mayoral election disagreed with his party colleague – Justice Minister Helen McEntee – who said that heroin injection centres should be considered as a measure to tackle drug use in Limerick.
Mayoral candidate and sitting Fine Gael councillor Daniel Butler said he doesn’t see such centres “as a priority for Limerick right now”.
Crack cocaine, cocaine, and heroin addiction remain a major problem in Limerick, which is to get its first directly-elected mayor after this Friday’s historic election (June 7).
Minister McEntee told reporters last week on her visit to the Céim ar Chéim Moyross probation project centre in Limerick – which helps divert young people away from crime and drugs addiction – that she was in favour of having injection centres in Limerick.
She said that “we need to look at all options to make sure that we can support people out of addiction and into recovery”.
Limerick Chamber recently wrote to the Minster about its concerns about anti-social behaviour, begging, and drug addiction negatively impacting the city centre.
The minster said she acknowledged the business body’s concerns, which she said made “very clear” to her that “they want more Gardaí on the beat, they want to ensure that those who are vulnerable within the community are supported that we can support them”.
The Minister said she was working to “increase the number of Gardaí”, and that, in the coming days, Limerick Gardaí would be equipped with body-worn cameras as part of a summer pilot project.
Minister McEntee also highlighted an initiative whereby Limerick Gardaí were “working closely with our HSE and our addiction services” to steer people in addiction towards support services rather than to the criminal courts.
However, the Fine Gael party’s candidate in the upcoming mayoral election, Councillor Daniel Butler, who is a qualified addiction counsellor, said he was not in favour of injection centres in Limerick.
“At the moment, I don’t see it as a priority. I think there’s really good services at Anna Liffey, who do a really good needle exchange, and other services. Limerick is a compact city, so access to services are far greater and we have an excellent HSE drug coordination officer that do a great job.”
The mayoral candidate added that “the injection centres are probably more suitable for larger scale cities like Dublin or Cork, where proximity to resources or services are an issue”.
“It’s a very different challenge in Limerick, so I don’t see it as a priority for Limerick right now, personally.”
