A major new report has backed calls for drug use to be decriminalised.
The study, released this morning by the Ana Liffey Drug Project and the London School of Economics said those caught with small amounts of drugs should not be treated as criminals.
The report warns that Ireland’s current laws are “counter-productive” as they fail to discourage drug use and act as a barrier for those seeking help.
Marcus Keane, Ana Liffey head of policy, said criminalisation simply doesn't work:
“There is plenty of evidence from around the world that it does not act as a deterrent to future drug use,” he said.
“It does not affect rates of prevalence – how many people are using in a given population.
“What it does do is it marks people with that brand of being a criminal. It impacts negatively on their life, on their ability to travel and on their ability to engage with the employment market and so on.”
Legalisation
However, Dublin City councillor Cieran Perry warned that decriminalisation could have unfortunate side effects.
“My fear is that arguments for decriminalisation are actually working towards an agenda of legalisation of drugs,” he said.
“That is the fear I have because any lessening of the sanctions for drug use unfortunately does encourage increased use.”
Health-based response
It comes after the Oireachtas Justice Committee strongly recommended considering a civil response instead of the criminal justice route.
The committee made the recommendation after travelling to Portugal to see first-hand the effects of the country's decriminalisation policy.
Since the policy was introduced there in 2001, there has been a decline in drug use among young people, a sharp drop in drug related deaths, a drop in new HIV cases and a surge in patients attending health clinics that deal with addiction.
Meanwhile an Oireachtas working group tasked with examining alternatives to criminal conviction for minor drug possession is due to report back to Government in the coming months.
The Government also issued a call-out for public opinions on the subject which closed back in July.
