The new National Drugs Strategy has been described as “a lost opportunity” and criticised for failing to decriminalise personal drug use by Northside TDs.
Minister for Health, Jennifer Carroll MacNeill, and Minister for the National Drugs Strategy, Jennifer Murnane O’Connor, published the Strategy and its first action plan last week.
Budget 2027 allocated €8.5 million for the new Strategy, which sets out Ireland’s strategic approach to reducing the harms of drug and alcohol use from 2026 to 2030 and incorporates recommendations from the Citizens’ Assembly on Drug Use and the Joint Committee on Drug Use.
The first action plan covers 2026 to 2028 and sets out 33 actions, with a focus on prevention, a health-led response to personal drug use and stronger monitoring of emerging drug threats.
However, Dublin Central TD Gary Gannon (Social Democrats) said the Strategy throws out years of cross-party work and civic consultation supporting the decriminalisation of personal drug use.
“We have now had three separate cross-party Oireachtas committee reports, in 2022, 2024 and 2026, all recommending the decriminalisation of drugs for personal use,” he said. “This conclusion was reached following extensive engagement with experts, frontline services and people directly affected by our drugs laws.
“Current Minister for Health, Jennifer Carroll MacNeill, was vice-chair of the Justice Committee that recommended decriminalisation four years ago and has reaffirmed her support for that recommendation since, yet the Government remains set on retaining criminal penalties for personal possession.
“Why, four years and three committee reports later, is this Government unwilling to implement this legislative change? The new referral scheme leaves criminal penalties firmly in place.”
Gannon claimed Gardaí have not received any relevant training to operate the referral scheme, which aims to refer those caught with drugs for personal use to health services as an alternative to prosecution.
Meanwhile, Sinn Féin spokesperson on the National Drug and Alcohol Strategy, Addiction, Recovery and Wellness, Ann Graves, described the new Strategy as “a lost opportunity to do the right thing”.
“The National Drugs Strategy is another attempt by the Department of Health, and in particular the HSE, to take power away from those most affected by the causes and consequences of the drug crisis and centre it around bureaucrats,” the Fingal East TD said.
The Government says the new Strategy incorporates its response to recommendations from the Citizens’ Assembly on Drug Use and the Joint Committee on Drug Use, but Deputy Graves claimed there was no “proper consultation” with stakeholders.
“The National Drugs Strategy was first published before the Joint Committee on Drug Use had even finished its work,” she said. “Having been forced to re-engage with the public, the Department of Health had a limited online consultation.
“I have had several roundtable discussions with stakeholders, including service providers, service users, community reps, families and those with ongoing lived and living experience.
“This Government had a great opportunity to use the Joint Committee’s report as a roadmap to deliver a truly comprehensive health response to drug use in Ireland. The report is the most researched and evidence-based response to drug use in the State’s history. The 161 recommendations varied from multi-annual funding and family support to decriminalisation of drug users and housing.
“Unfortunately, the National Drugs Strategy sidesteps the opportunity. Rather than embracing the opportunity, the Government has ignored or diluted some of the key recommendations from the report.”
Minister for Justice Jim O’Callaghan said the Strategy reflected the Government’s commitment to a health-led and evidence-based approach to addressing the harms caused by drug and alcohol use.
“While law enforcement continues to play a vital role in tackling organised criminal networks that profit from the drugs trade, we must also ensure that people who come into contact with the criminal justice system because of drug use can access the health services they need,” he said.
“Through measures such as the Health Referral Scheme and strengthened collaboration across the health, justice and community sectors, this Strategy will help reduce harm and improve outcomes for individuals and communities across Ireland.”
The new Strategy is built around five pillars: protecting individuals, families and communities from drug and alcohol-related harm; ensuring equitable access to HSE services; supporting recovery and social integration; prioritising health supports for people in contact with the criminal justice system; and preparing for a more volatile global drugs market.