A Minister of State yesterday urged the Garda to strongly consider reactivating undercover operations to reduce the sale and supply of ecstasy to young people.
The request by the Minister of State at the Department of Education, Mr Willie O'Dea, followed reports of an upsurge in ecstasy use among young people both in urban and rural areas of the Republic, and the death last weekend of a first-time teenage user in Scotland.
"I am deeply concerned by reports that drug dealers are peddling a stronger variety of ecstasy in order to revive its use among young people. The risk of increasing use is further amplified by the fact that the price of the drug on the street has dropped considerably since the time its popularity peaked in the early 1990s from £25 or £30 a tablet to £10 at the moment.
"Even more disturbing is the fact that this apparent revival in the use of the drug has led to the introduction of forms of ecstasy containing lethal ingredients, such as the veterinary anaesthetic Ketamine. This product is not safe for human consumption and its use in the make-up of ecstasy tablets doubles the dangers already associated with the drug," Mr O'Dea added.
The Minister appealed to young people not to forget that ecstasy can kill and to be aware that, with these new forms of the drug available, the potential for damage is even greater.
The Minister commended the Garda for its role in reducing ecstasy use by young people in the recent past. "Undercover Garda operations that resulted in the closure of a number of night-clubs associated with the drug and the conviction of many people found to be dealing it played a major part in bringing about the decline in the use of ecstasy over the past two years," he said.