Calls for injection centres in Dublin

There have been calls for the immediate establishment of injection centres in Dublin after the HSE warned of a sharp rise in heroin overdoses across the city. 

The HSE said it is monitoring the situation and awaiting “analytical confirmation on the situation”, while asking people to avoid buying from new sources and new batches of heroin “as there is an increased risk at this moment in time”.

More than 20 overdoses were recorded in a 24-hour period across Dublin this week.

Labour TD Aodhán Ó Ríordáin said that injection centres are a “proven way to reduce harm overdose deaths and improve the health and well-being of people who use drugs.”

“They provide a safe and supportive environment where people can inject drugs,” he stated.

“The most important thing is to get an injection centre up and running as quickly as possible. A mobile centre could work, but the requirement is immediate. We can’t afford to wait any longer. They are a vital part of a comprehensive approach to drug policy that is based on evidence and compassion.”

“Labour have long been calling for this, and now it is vital. The conservative coalition are running scared of drugs – rather than saving lives, they’re more interested in criminalising repeat users at a huge cost to the State and with no value to the person or their community,” he remarked.

He urged Government to “heed the HSE’s warning” and “take immediate action to establish an injection centre in Dublin.”

“Injection centres are a harm reduction measure. Those who need these services deserve humane and compassionate treatment.”

Green Party TD Patrick Costello said that the centres save lives, “especially at times like this.”

Costello pushed for the introduction of a medically supervised injection centre in his time as a Councillor, and championed it following his election to the Dáil in 2020.

Planning permission was granted for a centre on Merchants Quay late last year, but was hit by delays, which Costello says is “concerning.”

“Delays in Dublin have prevented similar services in other cities from starting too,” he said.

Scotland have recently announced plans for a medically supervised injection room in Glasgow, where users can consume drugs under the supervision of medical professionals.

The room will be run on a trial basis over a course of three years.