…Deputy Paul McAuliffe: There is one issue with the embargo in that the co-ordinator for the drugs task force in our area, a gentlemen named John Bennett, a fantastic man, passed away, and there have been suggestions that that post cannot be filled because of the recruitment embargo, even though it has been filled for 20 years. I ask the witnesses to look at that and maybe come back to me offline…

Mr. Bernard Gloster: I will let the other guys talk to the primary care centre as to where that is at. Sometimes, when you introduce a control, because our systems are very immature in some ways, you will get an unintended consequence. There would be no question but that I would consider the co-ordinator of a drugs task force to be an essential job, even if it is categorised as management-admin, which it probably should not be, so we will look after that. I had the pleasure a couple of months ago of going out to north Dublin to GP Care for All, which is essentially like a not-for-profit employment group that employs GPs…

Deputy Catherine Murphy: I might move on to the local drug and alcohol task force funding. In 2023, €3.5 million was allocated. What kinds of controls are on that in terms of it being spent on what it was announced for? Is it plugging gaps? Will there be a need for multi-annual funding or is it a one-off? I know how much has been allocated to each of the CHO areas but this is about the control on that money actually being spent on what it has been provided for.

Mr. Bernard Gloster: I do not have specific detail on that to hand. If we go back to the previous iterations of the regional drug task forces, I would have a clear expectation, first, that we would not vire that money for anything else and I would expect local chief officers in CHO areas to utilise the money for the task for which it is meant. If they have a difficulty either in recruiting or in utilising the money in a particular way, they should still use it within the overall drugs remit, whether that is on harm reduction such as methadone or on counselling, interventions and so on. I think the control of protecting the money for drugs is what the Deputy is talking about, and I would certainly be happy that this is not a major problem.

Deputy Catherine Murphy: We have been told roughly how much is to be allocated each week. Has it been allocated?

Mr. Bernard Gloster: I might come back to the Deputy on that and give her a specific assurance but I can certainly say that if she has been told how much has been allocated to the various drugs task force services, I can assure her it has been allocated.

Deputy Catherine Murphy: I am hearing from people on the ground, however, that the expectation is very different from the reality, and that is why I have concerns about the control.

Mr. Bernard Gloster: I will certainly look into that.

Deputy Catherine Murphy: Okay. I might come back to Mr. Gloster on that…

Deputy Catherine Murphy: Could I also just make it clear that the question I would like a response to in regard to the local drugs and alcohol task forces is whether the funding provides them with an annual budget. How did the HSE determine how much each CHO area received? Dublin's north and the south inner city, which are part of CHO 7 and CHO 9, respectively, are fairly similar to other big CHO areas yet we are all aware that there is a bigger issue in regard to drugs there. Could the witnesses provide the methodology and the terms and conditions?....