A press release by the Oireachtas Committee on Drugs on the 24th of June has called for the personal use of drug possession to be decriminalised in Ireland.
Committee Chairperson Deputy Gary Gannon said that drug possession for personal use should cease to be treated as a criminal matter and “should instead be met with a health-led approach. This is not a marginal adjustment. It is a recognition that criminalising people for their own drug use has not reduced harm, and that a different approach is both possible and overdue.”
Members of the Joint Committee on Drugs Use recommend the repeal of Section 3 of the Misuse of Drugs Act 1977. The Committee argues that the Act enforces the criminalisation of drug possession and it does not differentiate possession for sale and supply purposes from possession for personal use, often as a result of addiction.
The aim of this report is to decriminalise drug possession for personal use and to remove criminal charges for those addicted to substances, focusing on rehabilitation instead.
Portugal was the first EU country to pass this in 2000, utilizing a less punitive approach in their war on drugs. Looking back on 26 years of a more 'positive' policy being applied, it definitely has proved effective in Portugal. Spain has used a similar approach, which has beared fruit.
The Vice-Chair of the Committee, Senator Mary Fitzpatrick, said: “Addiction is no longer something that can be seen as affecting ‘other communities’. It is present across Irish society...The human cost is felt by individuals and families dealing with addiction and loss. The social cost is seen in communities living with trauma, stigma and drug-related harm. The economic cost is also significant, with resources tied up in systems that are not delivering the outcomes we need.”
“This evidence shows that a largely criminal justice-focused approach has not worked well enough. It has not reduced harm, it has not supported people early enough, and in some cases, it has added to stigma and exclusion.”
The report recommends by-laws should be put in place by local authorities in a similar approach to alcohol restrictions in public areas.
Taoiseach Micheal Martin said that in 2025, there were 15,422 cases of people seeking treatment for drug addiction and that cocaine addiction amounted to 42% of these.
He said the report would be given “very serious consideration” but that decriminalisation "does not guarantee consumption goes down".
Social Democrats leader Holly Cairns debated the Taoiseach in the Dáil after he said that the Government has had a health-led approach over the last 25 years. Cairns said she “respectfully disagreed.”
She said “One person dies nearly every day from a drug overdose in Ireland. People here are dying from drugs at a rate that is three times higher than the EU average.”
Irish Medical Organisation President Matthew Sadlier shared his response to the recommendation, saying he was cautious about the consequences of decriminalising drug possession.
"Saying that we should deal with drug-use as a health-led approach is a bit like saying in regards to smoking we just, instead of stopping people smoking, we'll just increase cancer treatments."
The Minister of State at the Department of Health Jennifer Murnane O'Connor disagreed with the report. She said the full decriminalisation of drugs would "effectively legalise" the possession of drugs for personal use.
