Deputy John O’Mahony addressed Dáil Eireann on Wednesday in relation to the closing down of Harristown House, the only public alcohol and drug treatment centre in the country which is funded by the probation service.
According to Dep O’ Mahony, Harristown House—which was established in 1998 as a residential treatment centre for offenders with alcohol and/or drug-related offences and takes referrals from the courts as well as from the prisons—gives residents who have completed a six-week course a chance to overcome their addictions to alcohol or drugs.
The centre, which was run on a relatively small budget and according to Dep O’Mahony is helping to keep people out of prison, will actually save money in the long run, as the cost of keeping one a prisoner in prison is somewhere in the region of €100,000, whereas the cost of this facility was €460,000 last year.
Dep O’Mahony said that those affected by the closure are those who are “an extremely vulnerable part of our society” and who will be left with “no possible source of support if this closure is implemented.” There will also be the loss of some 20 jobs.
