A meeting of the North West Regional Drug and Alcohol Task Force (NWRDATF) was held in Sligo County Council Offices on Thursday March 27th, at 11am.
Meeting With Minister Catherine Byrne
Task Force members were delighted to have met Minister Catherine Byrne in Carrick on Shannon, on Wed. 20th March. Ms Byrne is the Minister of State at the Department of Health with responsibility for Health Promotion and the National Drugs Strategy. This meeting was a unique opportunity to hear about the work and funded projects of the NWRDATF. Minister Byrne engaged with project workers and information was exchanged in relation to what is currently working, gaps/blocks in service provision and current emerging needs in the North West. The event was well attended and proved to be a very positive experience for all involved. It was agreed that a thank you letter along with photographs taken on the day would be sent to her office in the coming days.
Anti Social Behaviour on the Train
Due to an increase in the number of anti social behaviour incidents on the Sligo/Dublin train, it was agreed that a letter conveying the Task Force’s concern around this would be sent to the Operations Manager of Iarnrod Eireann.
National Oversight Committee
Pat Benson (Sligo PPN) announced that he had been appointed to National Oversight Committee (NOC) representing the community sector. The NOC’s objective is to:
- To give leadership, direction, prioritisation and mobilisation of resources to support the implementation of the National Drug Strategy – Reducing Harm, Supporting Recovery 2017-2025
- To measure performance in order to strengthen the delivery of drugs initiatives and to improve the impact on the drug problem
- To monitor the drugs situation and oversee the implementation of a prioritised programme of research to address gaps in knowledge
- To ensure that the lessons drawn from evidence and good practice inform the development of policy and initiatives to address the drug problem; and
- To convene Sub-Committees, as required, to support implementation of the strategy.
Mary McKiernan, Vice Chairperson, congratulated Pat on his appointment on behalf of the Task Force,
Next Meeting
The next Task Force Meeting takes place in Carrick on Shannon on the 30th of May 2019. Please get in touch if you have any questions or issues that you would like raised. The Leitrim PPN Representatives are Mary McKeirnan and Francie Gilmartin.
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