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Justice Minister Jim O’Callaghan has warned that under drug decriminalisation, “there would be nothing the Garda could do” if someone was taking heroin outside a school or smoking cannabis in a public park.
Speaking during Oral Questions in the Dáil this week, the Fianna Fáil Minister responded to recommendations from the Joint Committee on Drugs Use, chaired by Social Democrats TD Gary Gannon, which proposed the decriminalisation of possession of drugs for personal use. O’Callaghan said he agreed with many of the committee’s 161 recommendations but remained opposed to its central proposal, arguing that the experience of jurisdictions in North America raised serious concerns.
The Minister praised several aspects of the report before turning to the issue of decriminalisation.
“I want the Deputy to know I agree with a huge amount of what is in the report,” O’Callaghan said.
“However, in fairness to him and to the media, the one issue everyone wants to address and ask me questions about concerns what he has described as the central recommendation, which is to decriminalise all drugs, full stop.”
O’Callaghan said his concerns stemmed partly from one of the report’s own findings, which acknowledged that decriminalisation could lead to increased public drug use.
“I want to consider situations that might arise in my area or the Deputy’s,” he said.
“If, for example, somebody was taking heroin outside a school or smoking joints in a park or another public area, there would be nothing the Garda could do. At present, if that is happening, a person can be moved on. Gardaí can, because there is criminal activity, apprehend a person and seize the drugs because the activity is contrary to what is set out in the criminal law.
“If there were decriminalisation, I fear that what happened in Oregon and British Columbia would happen here. We would see an increase in public disorder and the public use of drugs. I just want to be conscious of the impact it would have on society more broadly, particularly children.”
Gannon responded by pointing to the recommendations of the Citizens’ Assembly on Drugs Use, which called for a comprehensive health-led response including decriminalisation for people found in possession of drugs for personal use.
He argued that the committee had examined the concerns raised by the Minister in detail and had proposed safeguards designed to avoid the problems experienced elsewhere.
“We also considered the matter and were quite fearful,” Gannon said.
“I represent the inner city. We examined the Oregon model in detail. What we found there was that Oregon failed on a number of fronts, but for one, it did not have the assets that we have.”
Gannon said that the State could use by-laws similar to those used to prevent drinking in public.
“We recognised that after our scrutiny and we would empower the Garda to go further than what Oregon or any other jurisdiction, including Lisbon, was able to include.”
O’Callaghan maintained that developments in North America reinforced his concerns.
“This is an interesting discussion,” he said.
“We obviously have different views. My concern is what happened in British Columbia. The Minister of Health there is a social democrat, a member of the New Democratic Party. British Columbia introduced decriminalisation about three years ago and is reversing out of it now because, it says, it has led to much public disorder and much public taking of drugs.
“I have great empathy for people who have addiction problems. Addiction is a huge challenge for anyone in life, but the Deputy and I also have to consider what the impact is going to be on other people, people who are not taking drugs, if you can openly take all drugs.
“It is not just cannabis the Deputy is talking about. We are talking about heroin and crack cocaine. If people can take those drugs openly without the Garda being able to say they cannot do that, it will have a very negative influence on people, especially children. If they see this happening, it is going to be normalised.”
Gannon rejected the suggestion that the committee’s recommendations would lead to greater public consumption of drugs, saying members had specifically sought to prevent such an outcome.
“Does the Minister honestly believe I would stand over a policy decision that would enable an increase in open drug dealing?” Gannon said.
“…What we established quite clearly was that the Oregon model failed because wraparound services were not present there. It was the same with the British Columbia model.
“…The section of the Misuse of Drugs Act 1977 that criminalises possession for personal use actually prevents people from coming forward to seek treatment.
“To ensure there would be no public consumption of drugs, we recommend clearly that council by-laws be passed to enable gardaí to move people on in that scenario. Also, we recommend that if they do not move on, public order measures would enable the Garda to arrest them.”
O’Callaghan said he accepted that the committee’s recommendations had been made in good faith but remained unconvinced that decriminalisation would produce the intended outcome.
“I am not in the slightest challenging the Deputy’s bona fides or genuine beliefs,” he said.
“I just have a concern that a policy advanced by people who are legitimately motivated by the best intentions may have a negative consequence.”
The Minister said the Government was already pursuing a health-led approach through the introduction of a health referral scheme.
“There is one thing we agree on, namely, that there is and should be a health-led approach,” O’Callaghan said.
“The health referral scheme, which will be in operation shortly, will provide an opportunity for someone who has, by statute, committed an offence to engage with health services and, as a consequence, avoid a criminal sanction.
“I am concerned about the matter. I want to be frank with the Deputy and I do not want him to think I am sitting on the fence. I disagree with him. I fully respect the opinion he has come to.
“I may be wrong but my view, and it is a strong view, is that the decriminalisation of drugs is going to increase the public use of drugs and, as a consequence, also increase the use of drugs generally.”
The committee’s recommendations followed an examination of Ireland’s drug policy and considered evidence from a number of international jurisdictions, including Portugal, Oregon and British Columbia.
Oregon became the first US state to decriminalise possession of small amounts of drugs after voters approved Measure 110 in 2020. The policy was later heavily criticised amid concerns over rising public drug use, overdose deaths and disorder, although researchers and policymakers have differed over the extent to which those issues were directly caused by decriminalisation rather than the wider fentanyl crisis affecting the United States. In 2024, the state recriminalised possession of small quantities of illicit drugs.
British Columbia introduced a three-year exemption from Canada’s federal drug laws in early 2023, allowing adults to possess small amounts of certain illicit drugs for personal use. Following public concerns over open drug use, the province introduced restrictions on drug consumption in public spaces in 2024 while retaining decriminalisation in private settings.
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