TDS AND SENATORS across the political spectrum have recommended that the possession of drugs for personal use be fully decriminalised.
It’s one of a list of recommendations in a new report by the Oireachtas joint committee on drug use, which is the result of years of research and discussion.
Senator Lynn Ruane, who is part of the committee as well as the Irish Coalition for Drug Reform, said current laws are “problematic” and disproportionately affect those already struggling, as some communities are “over-policed”.
“A drug user in a community that has other complex issues going on is much more likely to be encountering the guards using section 3,” she said.
Ruane said the state must move towards ‘decriminalising the individual’.
The committee did not give specifics on how much of certain drugs an individual should be legally allowed to have on them at one time.
The report also says that a small sample of jurisdictions where decriminalisation was trialled reported an increase in drug taking in public areas.
The committee recommended that local authorities use bye-laws, similar to those governing the consumption of alcohol in public, to deal with this.
Cross-party agreement
Members of the committee will meet this morning in Leinster House to present and discuss the final report.
They are TDs Gary Gannon (Social Democrats), Tom Brabazon (Fianna Fáil), Colm Burke (Fine Gael), Máire Devine (Sinn Féin), Ann Graves (SF), James O’Connor (FF), Willie O’Dea (FF), John Paul O’Shea (Independent), Marie Sherlock (Labour), as well as senators Teresa Costello (FF), Mary Fitzpatrick (FF), Evanne Ní Chuilinn (FG), Nicole Ryan (SF), and Ruane (Independent).
Drug decriminalisation became a talking point during the last general election, when Fianna Fáil committed in their manifesto to changing the law. However, the party later clarified that this would only apply to certain drugs, such as cannabis, and not cocaine or heroin.
The Citizens’ Assembly on Drug Use, as well as an interim report published by the committee in 2024 – during the last Dáil – had recommended decriminalising possession of any substance for personal use.
Another recommendation carried over to the final report was to make naloxone available over the counter.
Naloxone is used as an antidote to temporarily reverse the effects of opioid drugs like heroin, morphine, methadone and synthetic opioids like nitazene if someone overdoses.
It is currently a prescription-only medication, which Ruane says is “a real barrier to keeping people safe and alive”.
The report suggests a public information campaign so that people can understand what naloxone is and when to use it.
Investment
Experts and advocacy groups have been calling for greater investment in all aspects of society that promote stability and wellness, including housing, mental health services and social inclusion schemes.
Saoirse Brady, executive director of the Irish Penal Reform Trust, said the money spent incarcerating people each year (€103,000 per prison) would be better-spent on “holistic, trauma-informed rehabilitation” for those convicted for non-violent drug offences.
The report also calls for nationwide access to “alternative” treatment options, including Opioid Substitution Therapy and Heroin Assisted Treatment.
Heroin Assisted Treatment involves prescribing pharmaceutical-grade synthetic heroin (diamorphine) to people for self-administration under medical supervision to reduce the risks and harms associated with the consumption of heroin bought on the black-market.
Garrett McGovern, a GP and addiction medicine specialist, said he supports the report’s recommendations for “compassion and not punishment”.
“Ireland needs a more flexible, modern and patient-centred treatment system, where people can access the medication and support that works for them, without unnecessary barriers, delays or stigma,” McGovern said.