Public pressure forces closure of 'head shop' before it could open

Cllr Nick Killian this week paid tribute to the people of Dunshaughlin for their stance on the opening of a so-called 'head shop' in the village. The drug paraphernalia shop was due to open in a shop unit on the village's main street last week, but was closed down when the landlord and letting agent realised what type of business was to operate there. Cllr Killian said people, and parents especially, should be vigilant and protest against the opening of such shops, as they did in Dunshaughlin last week. He said that parents who called the Joe Duffy 'Liveline' show on RTE radio last week had highlighted the dangers associated with the products available in these stores. The opening of the shop in Dunshaughlin created controversy on the airwaves of 'Liveline' last week. When the first Irish head shop opened in 2000, the bulk of its income was derived from sales of rolling papers, pipes, grinders, seeds, lights, propagators and other items associated with the growing and use of cannabis. That changed two years later when, thanks to the exploitation of a legal loophole, it became possible to sell fresh magic mushrooms and similarly psychoactive 'Philosopher's Stone' truffles in Ireland. By the time the loophole was closed in 2004, a drugs prevalence study showed that four per cent of the population here had tried magic mushrooms. Dunboyne Fine Gael councillor Maria Murphy has slammed the Minister for Justice for his failure to provide effective legislation on head shops. "The number of 'head shops' in the country has increased dramatically in the last couple of years and, despite the dangers to our young people, the minister has been slow to react," she said. "We have heard horror stories from parents about the effects on young people of products purchased in these shops, concerns have been expressed by medical experts and the dangers posed by the products in these shops cannot be ignored." She said the opening of a shop in Dunshaughlin last week had parents greatly concerned because of the large number of young people in the community. "Our young people have a great degree of curiosity and are unaware of the dangers which face them until it is too late. Thankfully, this shop was closed quickly. However, it has heightened the dangers for parents in the locality." She said Fine Gael deputies Catherine Byrne and Deirdre Clune are doing great work in this area and she supported them in calling for the minister to establish an effective system of inspection and strict regulation. Navan town councillor Anton McCabe also says that there is an urgent need for a framework to be put in place to regulate the operation of head shops. "Few, if any, of the products sold in these shops have a comprehensive list of ingredients on their packaging and many of them are sold with misleading branding and labelling. In addition, generally speaking, these shops do not take out product liability insurance, so if a problem does arise, the scope for a customer pursuing the matter is extremely limited," he said. "Just last week, we saw media reports where, in December alone, six young people were admitted to Cork University Hospital suffering the ill-effects of these 'herbal highs'. The Government must address these concerns as a matter of extreme urgency," said the Labour Party councillor.