The Deputy Leader will be aware that I am the chair of the south western regional drug and alcohol task force, otherwise known as SURF. An issue has arisen with a project we have in Newbridge, which is in the Deputy Leader’s constituency, concerning the Peter McVerry Trust. It is running a front-line addiction service. It has gone to landlord after landlord looking for new premises, but no one will take it. The town badly needs this service. After more than one year, the service still sits upstairs in an industrial estate between Naas and Newbridge.

As the Deputy Leader can imagine, being located upstairs is not good for people with mobility problems. It is in the old industrial estate, Toughers, so while it is meant to be a drop-in service, it is not very easy to drop in. Nobody is defending the location. The trust certainly is not. However, it seems like the doors are shut.

People have complained to me that pharmacies in Kildare town will not dispense methadone. We know of one case where methadone was prescribed by a vet for a dog in the area. It seems that, in Kildare town, a dog can get methadone but the people who need it badly cannot. It is blatant discrimination. The HSE fully knows about this. We had a recovery event in the audiovisual room yesterday and we were all championing recovery. The room was full. It is Recovery Month. We were all saying that recovery is possible but, while we are saying that, the very people we are talking about are being pushed further from the help they absolutely need. The Deputy Leader will know that I have worked in this area for over 20 years. In 2026, vulnerable people in our own area cannot get basic medication in their own town. That shows a stigma that is built into the whole system. These are private pharmacies. I know the HSE is limited in its reach but I ask the Deputy Leader to bring the Minister of State with responsibility for drugs policy, Deputy Murnane O'Connor, before the House to answer questions such as whether the primary care centre in Kildare town can dispense methadone and which State building can host the addiction service in Newbridge. I believe recovery is possible but only if the doors are open.