Episode Details

A Clare MEP is calling for urgent action at national and European level to support victims of drug debt intimidation. Speaking during a debate in the European Parliament on the rights and protection of victims of crime, the Scariff-based MEP Michael McNamara highlighted the particular vulnerability of young people caught in cycles of drug debt. Ireland’s first national data report on drug-related intimidation, published this year by the Health Research Board, recorded more than 1,000 cases across every county, with nearly three in ten victims experiencing intimidation for more than a year. MEP McNamara says victims are often too frightened to turn to the authorities.