The number of drug users seeking help from the largest voluntary drug treatment centre in the State continued to climb last year - by over 360 to 3,331.
The continuing increase in numbers seeking help means questions must be asked about the Government's commitment to its own drugs strategy, said Mr Tony Geoghegan, director of Merchants Quay Ireland, which helps people affected by drugs and homelessness.
Writing in the organisation's annual report, to be published today, he said the National Drugs Strategy (NDS) "appears to have ground to a halt".
The NDS was drawn up in 2001 under the auspices of the Department of Community, Rural and Gaeltacht Affairs, to run until 2008. Its remit is to reduce the supply of drugs, develop treatment and carry out research.
The NDS promised "a substantial expansion of services but development now appears to have ground to a halt", said Mr Geoghegan. "Throughout 2003 the health boards had a moratorium on the initiation and development of new projects while voluntary sector budgets were not increased in line with inflation, which means we have to deal with real cutbacks.
"Against this backdrop questions must be asked about the extent of the Government's commitment to the National Drug Strategy."
He said the level of "continued problem drug use and homelessness" is a clear indication of the extreme severity of the situation.
Merchants Quay Ireland last year had 26,181 visits - an increase of 2,123 on 2002. The total number of actual clients at Merchants' Quay last year was 3,331, up from 3,164 in 2002 and 2,965 in 2001. Of last year's total, 2,698 were men and 633 women.
The number of new clients has, however, fallen slightly, to 616 - 513 men and 103 women. In 2002 the project saw 678 new clients and in 2001 the number was 683.
