Today I would like to draw the attention of the House to the latest report from the European Union Drugs Agency. The drug trends report for 2026 makes for very stark reading from a European perspective but also from an Irish perspective. Ultimately, what it tells us in very clear language is that our challenge with drugs is increasing every day. Drugs are more available, more powerful and more dangerous right across Europe but also here in Ireland and not just in Dublin, but right across the country. It is really important that we understand that message and accept it. We cannot continue to try to police our way out of what is a public health emergency.

The report is available online. It was released this week. There are some very key, stark findings in it. The lives of more than 7,600 people in Europe ended because of drug use. In Ireland, according to the latest statistics, there were 343 drug poisoning deaths and in eight out of ten of those deaths, there was more than one drug used. What that tells us is that polydrug use is now more common.

We also need to accept that cocaine, and increasingly crack cocaine, and synthetics are dominating. Drug use and drug abuse is not something that is confined to marginalised, at-risk, hard-to-reach individuals, cohorts or communities. It is a universal, society-wide issue. Middle-class people holding down full-time jobs are engaging in regular drug use and abuse and our water testing in Dublin shows that. It shows spikes at weekends. It also shows, and we do not need "Prime Time" to tell us this but will see it if we go through any of our streets, that young people's lives are being robbed from a very young age. They are being groomed and used to courier cocaine and other substances. It is a real issue. The report gives us statistics but more importantly, what we have within this House is the Oireachtas drugs committee which is approaching the conclusion of its work. It is really important that the report of the committee and these Houses endorse a comprehensive, health-led to our drug problem. We must recognise that this is not just a criminal justice issue and we cannot police our way out of this public health crisis. We need to adequately resource both universal and targeted prevention measures. Our prevention measures must be properly resourced, evidence-based and both universal and targeted. We must do this as a child-protection measure, a public health initiative and a whole-of-community response. The community safety partnerships offer a huge opportunity for communities to bring together the health services, the gardaí, the teachers, parents and the wider community to deliver health-led responses in our communities. I ask that the House would debate the report.