Go raibh maith agat, a Leas-Cheann Comhairle.

[Translation: Thank you, Mr Deputy Speaker.]

It gives me no joy to bring forward this motion. It comes from a place of sadness and tragedy. For the past three years, I have worked with bereaved families from across the North, campaigning alongside them in the hope that we can secure additional resources to help people who are battling with addiction and to help to prevent or reduce harm, where possible. My time spent with those families has brought home the absolute devastation that drugs cause to families in all our communities. I doubt that any Members would struggle to think of a family whom they know personally, represent or have worked with who has not been, or is not, affected by the awful disease that is addiction. It costs our economy £1·5 billion a year. That figure alone makes a powerful argument for investing now to help people recover when they are battling with addiction. Investing in recovery can and will save people's lives. Again, I have no doubt that we have all heard many sad and heartbreaking stories from families who tried to get help for their loved ones before it was too late but failed.

The families with whom I have worked over the past number of years have told me that the reason that they failed in their desperate attempts to keep their loved one alive was the lack of available treatment options at that time of crisis. Families exhausted routes via their GP, via emergency departments and via community addiction teams. They made multiple attempts to find an appropriate and accessible wrap-around residential rehab unit that could have taken in their loved ones during that small, precious window of opportunity when they were crying out for the help that they needed.

I in no way underestimate the excellent work that services provide and the brilliant and dedicated staff who work in addiction services at community level, at trust level or in primary care. We know, however, that the number of deaths has doubled over the past 10 years. That tells us that something, somewhere is not working. Too many people are dying an unnecessary death. Addiction is a disease, not a choice. It tears families apart, and we should not leave those families to deal with the additional burden of not knowing where to turn or where to send their loved ones when battling with that illness.

We talk about harm reduction and harm prevention. An overdose prevention facility is needed in Belfast. Throughout Europe, overdose prevention facilities have been successful in managing the number of overdose deaths. Of course, the ideal scenario is that people do not inject drugs, but if they are going to inject, it makes more sense for them to do so where it is safe and where trained staff can help them, monitor them and work with them, and if the worst happens and people overdose, they can reverse it.

Rapid drug testing is another initiative that will save lives. The Minister is probably aware that a model is available through Queen's University at the minute. I know that budgets are tight and are squeezed, but if it were possible to get that model funded even for the first year in order to get it off the ground, its testing programme could provide a 24-hour turnaround that would confirm when dangerous or lethal drugs are in circulation on our streets. That would allow an alert system to kick in, similar to what happens in Dublin and parts of Britain. The Dublin model is used elsewhere. If we could introduce it here, in some form or at some level, it would save lives.

As the amendment implies, the issue requires Executive-wide support. During questions to the Minister of Justice yesterday, we heard about the pressure on our prison system. People who fall through gaps in the health system, in education and across society sadly end up in jail with poor mental health and addictions. In our schools, children are now at huge risk. It has been reported in the news recently that vapes mixed with spice have made their way into the school community. Parents have been put on alert by the PSNI, which is warning that, for young people, it is an immediate concern. Every Department must make interventions to help with those critical issues. As the motion states, there is an intrinsic connection between poverty, deprivation, and drug and alcohol addiction, and that will also require a strong response from the Department for Communities through anti-poverty interventions.

I understand that the issue is cross-departmental and that each Department has a huge responsibility to address it, but I hope that, from the health perspective, the Minister can respond positively to the motion and support the calls that are coming from families who are sadly at the other end of the problem, with their loved ones having already died. Their lives have already been lost to drugs. My hope is that their voices can be heard loud and clear during today's debate.

The Jack's Promise campaign group has invited parents, siblings and friends who have lost loved ones to a candle-lit vigil that has taken place in the past couple of years on the steps of Stormont, in the mouth of Christmas, to highlight the empty seat they have at their Christmas table because their loved one has died. The People's Kitchen held a poignant demonstration last summer, when it laid out 212 pairs of shoes along the steps of Stormont to mark each life that has been lost to an overdose in 2021.

I am really pleased that the Minister has agreed to meet some families this Thursday, which is a coincidence as we are debating the matter today. I know that the Minister will meet and directly engage with families this week, and his officials have intently engaged with some of the bereaved families, which they appreciate — I know because I have been at some of the meetings — and they will also appreciate the direct conversation with the Minister on Thursday. Outside of the meetings and the engagement, we need a firm commitment to deal with the rise in drug and alcohol deaths and to provide the resources to assist with doing that, and it is not an easy ask.

I will conclude by highlighting the calls from mothers in the Belfast area who attended the Stormont vigil a few months ago and who are making a direct plea for a rehabilitation unit in Belfast.

Chloe Lennon from West Belfast was 22 when she died from a drug overdose in November 2022. Her mother, Lorraine, told BBC News that her daughter had started taking drugs at the age of 13. She stated:

"She suffered trauma and took cannabis to deal with that. Then she started taking pregabalin, cocaine, heroin and strong alcohol. Her mental health went through the roof. She needed help in Belfast but there wasn't anything when she needed it."

It was heart-wrenching, her mother said, that, two weeks after Chloe died, she received an appointment for help. Mrs Lennon explained:

"One did come through, but they discharged her because she didn't attend. She didn't attend because she was already dead - it was too late."

Those are her mother's words: it was too late.

Lorraine Brennan's son, Jack, died from a drug overdose in 2021. She said that Jack needed help; he was crying out for help, but the services were not available. She stated that when he was brought to A&E:

"I begged the mental health team to keep him. He begged to be sectioned. But he was let home."

Jack was also from West Belfast. He had taken prescription drugs since he was 15 and, by the age of 21, was using heroin and suffered from mental health issues, alongside his drug use. Lorraine said:

"We as a family, want to prevent other families from losing a loved one to addiction and experiencing this painful grief and loss. We want to give our young people more hope and support when they need it."

The Jack's Promise petition was presented to the Assembly in 2021. It now has over 4,000 signatures. Sadly, Jack's experience is not an isolated one, and it is arguably one of the most common experiences that families are currently facing, not just in Belfast but in every area of the country.

I will end my remarks by reading one of Jack's poems. Jack, God love him, wrote it before he went into rehab in Liverpool. The poem is so heart-breaking, and it is called 'The Days of My Life':

"Surrounded by people yet all alone trapped within this darkening zone. A world where chaos and hate overtake any bit of happiness that tries to escape. Laughter and positive thoughts never seem to last, because I am haunted by my memories of the past. Running the distance with nowhere to go, these are the days of my life, a Broadway show. I scream out for help yet they never really hear, the demons of death are coming so near! Echoes in my head tormenting me all day long, breaking the man who was once whole and strong. What does serenity mean anyway? Is it the spring in my step or the words that I say. Suicide seems the answer, many times I’ve tried, happiness seems to be the tears that I have cried. Unable to distinguish what’s real from fiction. Hope is an illusion, an optimists prediction. I wonder what will it take to get me right, a visit from the devil on a lonely night? Angels prepare to battle and take a stand to remind me of their holy land. When I want to give up, they push for me to be strong, and in my head I hear their comforting song. Life is an illusion, a constant mind trick on me... who knows what my fate will be. Heaven and hell are both fair game, will I find peace or leave them with shame? Surrounded by people, yet all alone, trapped within this darkening zone".

I am sorry for going over time.