A major study on drug treatment has shown a significant reduction in drug use and involvement in crime among serious drug users after just one year's treatment.
The study provides a clear indication of the success of drug treatment programmes, which cost the State about €140 million a year.
Minister of State Noel Ahern welcomed the report, commissioned by the National Advisory Committee on Drugs (NACD), and said it would bolster the case for greater resources to be directed towards drug treatment.
He also said he hoped it would send out a strong message to communities opposed to local drug treatment on the positive impact of providing local services.
Mr Ahern said: "I think we have all learned that if a community has a drug problem, the best way to deal with it is to address it rather than ignore it.
"If you don't provide treatment, you're storing up trouble for individuals and communities."
He said he was "horrified" over opposition to drug treatment in the Dublin suburb of Castleknock last week, and expressed concern over community resistance in one Leinster town - believed to be Arklow - where many have protested against plans for local drug treatment services.
The research published yesterday, carried out by the National University of Ireland (NUI) Maynooth, involved more than 400 opiate users over the course of a year. After one year, the research recorded:
r A one-third drop in heroin use, and other significant reductions in other drug use;
r A halving of the proportion of people involved in crime to fund their drug habit, from 31 per cent to 14 per cent;
r An increase in the proportion of users abstinent from all drugs - excluding alcohol - from 7 per cent at the start of treatment to 27 per cent after a year;
r Improvements in the physical and mental health of users; and
r Increased contact among users with GPs, employment and housing services, and a decrease in contact with A&E units, social and welfare services
NACD chairman Dr Des Corrigan said the committee had funded a continuation of the study to provide further information on participants after a three-year period. "We have met with the Minister and outlined our main conclusion to him that investment in services leads to benefits to the individual drug user, to their family and to the rest of the community and that this investment must be continued," Dr Corrigan said.
The main author of the study, Dr Catherine Comiskey of NUI Maynooth, said the results were very positive and tallied with international research in areas such as the UK, US and Australia.
The next key step in the development of drug treatment is the expansion of rehabilitation services, linking drug users to training, education and other forms of support.
The participants in the study generally had poor levels of education and relied on social welfare as their main source of income. Almost one-third had left school before 15, while just one-fifth had been employed in the three months prior to treatment.
A total of 18 per cent reported being homeless at some stage in the previous three months, while 8 per cent were homeless at the beginning of treatment.
Less than one-third were living in the family home, while one-quarter were in their own or rented accommodation.