AFTER SIX DAY and a half sessions over six months, in which they heard from experts on drug policy, Gardaí, HSE officials and people with lived experiences of addiction, the 99 randomly selected people who made up the Citizens’ Assembly on Drug Use have agreed on 36 key policy recommendations for Government.
Overall, the members voted for a health-led approach to drug use, that involves decriminalising possession for personal use, to some extent.
The chair, Paul Reid, today said that the assembly’s recommendations call for a “much more ambitious and progressive approach to dealing with drugs in Ireland.”
“There is no time to waste here. There has been much talk in recent years about the Portuguese approach to drugs. The Citizens’ Assembly has now recommended an Irish version of the Portuguese model,” Reid added.
However, the assembly’s recommendations on decriminalisation are framed as questions that the Oireachtas will have to answer. They accommodate for decriminalisation that only goes as far as diverting cannabis users to health services a few times before prosecuting serial offenders, to the abolishment of prison sentences for drug use altogether.
Over Saturday and Sunday of the weekend just gone by, the citizens – who have gotten to know each other quite well during debates and tea breaks in the Grand Hotel Malahide – voted on exactly what those recommendations should be.
Crucially, in an initial vote, they opted to recommend a change to the ‘status quo’ for drug policy, and treatment of people dealing with addiction in Ireland.
The most hotly debated question amongst the assembly was whether to recommend that the State should take a health-led approach to individual drug use (which involves an unspecified degree of decriminalisation) or whether Ireland should be bolder yet again and pursue a legalisation and regulation approach to dealing with drug use.
The citizens, who discussed the matter sitting at round tables, believed in the majority that a “comprehensive health-led approach” was the way forward when it comes to possession of mushrooms (Psilocybin), cocaine and “other drugs”, but the vote was a lot tighter when it came to cannabis.
Thirty-eight citizens voted for legalisation and regulation of cannabis for personal use, while 39 voted for a health-led response.
There were some grumblings in the room afterwards, and one woman told the chair of the assembly (Paul Reid – the former CEO of the HSE) and the secretariat that she felt that voting process wasn’t explained properly, as a number of people had only voted for one option out of five that were on the ballot, rather than putting down a No.2, a No.3 and so on.
Reid and the others at the top table weren’t buying that argument, as the voting system used was proportional representation, which is the same system used for every kind of election in Ireland.
And so, the Citizens’ Assembly has not recommended that the State should ‘Free the Weed’, but it has opened the door to decriminalisation of personal drug use.
However, the degree to which drug use will be decriminalised has been left fairly open to the interpretation of the Oireachtas.
The Assembly’s report will be submitted in full by the end of this year, and there will be a lengthy process of debate at Government level before any changes to Ireland’s drug policy and legislation are set in stone. Therefore, enacting the recommended changes will in all likelihood be a matter for the next Government, and whichever party or parties are leading it.
What is a ‘health-led response’ to drug use ?
Under this approach, the State would treat drug use and misuse primarily as a public health issue, rather than a criminal justice one. Possession of controlled drugs would remain illegal (in larger quantities held by dealers), but people found with drugs on their person for their own use would “first and foremost” be afforded opportunities to engage with “health-led services”.
This approach, if legislated for by the Oireachtas, could see the possibility of criminal persecution over simple drug possession minimised or completely removed – the Assembly have left that up to lawmakers to decide on.
For the Gardaí, this would mean referring a person directly to a SAOR Brief Intervention, is a course run by the HSE which is designed to inform people on drug use, and dissuade them from drug taking. People will then be referred on to addiction services if necessary.
To a certain extent, this already happens in Ireland. Back in 2020 the Gardaí put the adult caution system into effect, which meant that people found with a small amount of cannabis on them could escape a criminal record, but multiple time offenders would still be booked.
What the Assembly is recommending is a joined up approach from Gardaí and health services, under-pinned by changes to legislation, and potentially new legislation.
Key questions as to whether simple possession will be prosecuted after multiple instances, and whether prison sentences for drug use will be totally removed, have been left up to the Oireachtas to answer.
What were the other options?
The assembly could have opted to recommend several other responses to drug use, these included:
This approach would mean that the offence of possession of drugs for personal use, as legislated for under section 3 of the 1977 Misuse of Drug Act, and the sentences provided for under Section 28 of the Act, would be retained.
For those convicted of cannabis use, the current penalty on summary conviction is either a fine up to 250, or imprisonment up to 12 months.
This approach would see the Government implementing the Health Diversion legislation it has already planned for, but hasn’t enacted.
This approach would not allow for any decriminalisation of drug use, but would provide for leniency with first-time offenders, who would be able to escape a criminal record by undertaking a HSE course.
This would see possession of controlled drugs remaining illegal, while people found in possession of drugs for personal use would be treated with tolerance, combining decriminalisation and depenalisation. No diversion to health services would have to be made by Gardaí.
This would have seen the State take a totally new approach, whereby some or all drugs would be legalised and subject to regulation.
People would be able to consume drugs without fear of arrest or prosecution, without stigma, and from a controlled market, which would mean they would be informed on the quality and safety of substances.
The exchequer would also benefit from a new revenue stream from the taxation of drug sales. There would also be the possibility of job creation, and investing taxation funds into addiction treatment programmes.
This approach would have required a significant redrafting of current legislation, as well as new legislation.
Who did the assembly hear from before deciding?
The members of the assembly have heard from many different people who have experienced the impacts of drug policy and drug use.
One member who spoke to The Journal, Adrian from Co Longford, said that the more he learned from the speakers, the more he came to think “that six sessions was not enough for us to be making decisions on such complex issues”.
He added that though he did not have strong personal views on drug policy at the start of the process, his mind has been changed by what he has learned since.
“The people who became caught up in the justice system because of taking drugs in their younger days had the biggest impact on me,” he explained.
Adrian came to the view that a health-led response to drug use was the way forward.
Elaine, another member of the assembly, said that in the beginning, she didn’t know how she would contribute:
“I didn’t know a lot about drugs, so at the start i wondered, how am i going to be of help to the decision-making here?It has been a huge education.
“I’d never heard of a Citizens Assembly, but after each of our sessions I had more of an opinion. I’d find myself thinking about it on the drive home.”
Elaine said she wanted to see a health-led approach to addiction services.
“We’ve listened to people affected by all this. Some people did one thing wrong, and their whole life fell apart. They need support to get past their addiction, but still have a house to come back to, still be able to get a job. People lost all that, that was heart-wrenching for me, because I had never heard of anything like it before,” she explained.
Back in May a series of speakers with lived experience of addiction told the assembly members that marginalised communities face more difficulties within the justice system as a result of drug taking.
Shannon Connors told the members of her own experience of drug use. She began using drugs after being expelled from school as a child.
Speaking about drug use she told the members: “People like to say it’s in the lower class communities and stuff, but it’s not. It’s happening with people who are working up high, with barristers and solicitors.
“It’s happening with everybody… and if you’re in the system already or you’re highlighted already, you’re going to get more of a sentence than somebody that has money or can be [bailed] out.”
Another woman told the assembly that she was born with an addiction disorder, due to her mother’s use of heroin while pregnant.
She told the assembly that drug dealing was part of the “infrastructure” of the community she grew up in, and that eventually, she faced the consequences of her addiction when she received a criminal record, which saw her home and children taken away from her.
Officials and experts came before the assembly too.
Garda assistant commissioner Justin Kelly voiced his grave concerns about the impact that legislation of controlled drugs would have. He said that prosecution for personal drug use is not currently the norm within the Irish criminal justice system, and that Gardaí are focused on targeting those supplying drugs, and causing harm to communities.
Chief Medical Officer Breda Smyth warned the assembly that cannabis use can lead to addiction, that cannabis being dealt in Ireland has become more potent, and that there has been a steady increase in psychiatric admissions due to cannabis use.
What are the other recommendations?
The assembly agreed on 36 recommendations to Government in total. Many of these focus on funding for health and rehabilitation services, and the need for early intervention in addiction treatment.
These recommendations include:
The State should formalise, adopt and source alternative, health-focused options for people with a drug addiction within the criminal justice system.
Government should give greater political priority and prominence to drug policy and related issues. A dedicated Cabinet Committee chaired by the Taoiseach, supported by a Senior Officials Group, should consider and publish a detailed annual report on drug trends and emerging risks.
Government should publish a new iteration of the National Drugs Strategy as a matter of urgency. A first draft should be published by June 2024 for consultation, with the recommendations of the Citizens’ Assembly as a key input.
The Government must assign accountability, at the highest level, related to the State’s response to problematic drug use, including the implementation and tracking of the progress of the recommendations of the Citizens’ Assembly
The Government should recognise, value and adequately resource the role of family members and extended support network in supporting people affected by drugs use, and their children. Kinship carers and children should have the same rights as foster carers and foster children, and this should include legal rights and monetary rights on a non means-tested basis.
You can read the full list here.
How does a ‘health-led’ model work in other countries?
Portugal decided to radically change its approach to drug use and treatment over 20 years ago, in response to an opioid crisis in its major cities.
Politicians there have long hailed the policy change as a success, which has seen a decrease in drug-related deaths.
Last month, our reporter Niall O’Connor went to Portugal to find out how health diversion really works as a response to drug use.
He met Nuno Capaz from Portugal’s Ministry of Health. Capaz said that the change in Lisbon from the 1990s experience of “open air drugs markets” is dramatic.
He said those issues, for the most part, have been removed off the streets of the capital city.
Does the Government have to follow the recommendations?
The short answer is no. The Government is not bound to enact the recommendations made by the assembly, but it has made a commitment to considering them.
Social Democrats TD Gary Gannon today said that it is imperative that the Government is bound to make the recommended changes a legislative reality.
Gannon said that other countries such as Portugal decriminalised drug use over two decades ago, and recorded a drop in drug-related deaths as a result.
“Drug injection rates also declined, especially among young people and new users.
“It is vital that the Government is bound by the Citizens’ Assembly’s recommendations and that a clear timeline is set out for any legislative changes that may be needed. A major investment in addiction services, including a substantial increase in detox beds, will also be required,” Gannon added.
It is possible that making legislative changes in line with the assembly’s recommendations could take a long time. Additional funding and staffing would be needed for HSE teams that would be involved in enhanced addiction treatment services.
As the health service is already facing major budgetary challenges, a key question going forward is likely to be how it will be able to accommodate and deliver the health-led response to drug use that the Citizens’ Assembly believes Ireland needs.
The changes that the Gardaí will have to make to how they operate will depend on how far the Government takes the mandate it has been given for drug use decriminalisation.
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