It was in the news yesterday that Social Democrats TD and Chair of the Oireachtas Committee on Drugs, Deputy Gary Gannon, cited a rise in drug possession charges as a further reason for decriminalisation.
Gannon, as we know, is one of the staunchest and leading cheer-leaders of an approach which would see the decriminalisation of small amounts of even class A drugs for personal use. I am surprised that someone so fired up on the issue has been tasked with leading the Joint Oireachtas Committee which eventually will shape public policy.