“Having raised this issue in the European Parliament, and met with senior members of An Garda Síochána over the summer, I was aware of the Drug Related Intimidation & Violence Engagement (DRIVE) Garda project. The problem is that many, including many affected by drug debt intimidation, which is spreading like a plague through our society, are not aware of it,” McNamara said.

“It only receives €280,000 in government funding annually, or a little over €13,000 per Garda Division, so it’s little wonder it’s not well known.

“In the recent budget, an additional €65,000 was allocated nationally for additional training, to promote awareness of the DRIVE Project, and hold a national conference ‘to review progress with stakeholders from the community, voluntary and statutory sectors, as well as Department of Health and government officials.’ That alone is likely to cost at least the entire €65,000 of additional funding provided,” McNamara claimed.

He contrasted this with the government allocating an initial €341,000 from its EU Presidency budget to host the AI Summit 2026 held last week, to which both Enterprise Ireland and IDA Ireland provided further resources. Ireland’s first national data report on drug-related intimidation, published this year by the Health Research Board, recorded: 

• over 1000 cases across every county of the State in 2024-2025, 
• almost two-thirds of victims were living with family members and over one-third  of those cases were actively experiencing intimidation at the time they sought help,
• drug-related debt was present in over two-thirds of cases, ranging from under €100 to more than €20,000,
• nearly three in ten victims endured intimidation for more than a year, 
• in over a third of cases no support was offered to the individual despite their disclosure.  

“This reporting, though welcome, is just the tip of the iceberg”, McNamara said.

“There isn’t a community in Ireland, whether urban or rural, that isn’t affected. We cannot afford not to combat this drug debt intimidation. To fail would allow drug gangs to become more powerful than our State. To combat them requires the government to provide leadership and, especially, funding and it is proving neither,” McNamara concluded.