Drugs will continue to be a fact of life in Irish society unless social and economic inequalities are addressed, the Sinn Fein deputy leader, Mr Martin McGuinness, said in Dublin yesterday.
At the publication of his party's drugs policy, "Reclaiming and Rebuilding our Communities", he said "the heroin crisis is still very much with us" and ecstasy and hash were "gaining a strong foothold".
The document noted that there were 13,400 heroin addicts in the State, fewer than 4,000 of whom were "receiving any kind of treatment". It called for more detoxification beds and custodial drug treatment centres in jails and said local authorities should refuse to house drug-dealers.
