Gino Kenny addressed the Tánaiste on the Programme for Government's health-led approach to drug misuse, arguing criminalisation fails and calling for urgent action to save lives. He challenged the current policy as ineffective and warned that without change more people will die.
Main argument
Gino Kenny criticised previous governments for paying "lip service" to drug policy and said the current approach does not work. He argued that criminalising people for drug use is detrimental to individuals and society and insisted a different, health-led approach is needed to stop preventable deaths.
Government response
The Tánaiste said the Government has expanded addiction services and has invested significantly in recent years, including in the Tánaiste's own constituency. He noted progress on plans for a supervised injecting centre but acknowledged difficulties in advancing that project.
Debate over decriminalisation and expert advice
The Tánaiste said he shares some concerns about decriminalisation, arguing it can leave people with convictions and hinder access to services. He referenced an expert group established while serving as Taoiseach that reached a different conclusion, and said the Government has not closed its mind on the issue.
Next steps suggested
Both speakers pointed to the Programme for Government's proposal to convene a Citizens' Assembly as a potential way to examine the issue further. Kenny emphasised immediate action to save lives, while the Tánaiste suggested the Citizens' Assembly could help tease out complex policy options.
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Tanaiste, I want to raise an issue with you today in relation to the Programme for Government section, page 50, about the health-led approach to drug misuse. And, you know, previous governments have paid absolute lip service to this issue, so much so that hundreds of people, in fact thousands of people, should be alive rather than the lip service that governments have made, particularly around this issue. We have to have a different approach. The approach at the moment doesn't work. Criminalising people for drug use simply doesn't work. It's completely detrimental to the person and society as a whole. Obviously, there is, in the Programme for Government, it says that the citizens of Sheinby should be convened. And that's good, right? But we need to go beyond that. And we need to do action to save lives, have a different approach in relation to drug misuse, because it simply, simply doesn't work, Tanaiste. And it costs lives, and if you don't change your approach, it will cost more lives. Finally, just to Deputy Kenny, I'd say that, you know, Government has invested a lot in addiction services in recent years. They've been expanded significantly, including in my own constituency. We are moving ahead, or trying to move ahead, with the plan for the supervised injecting centre, Merchants Quay, but we've run into difficulties on that. And I'm of a similar view to you on decriminalisation. I don't think that decriminalisation model works. It puts people, leaves people with convictions, and makes it harder for them to get on with their lives, and also makes it harder for them to engage with services and get the help that they need. Drug dealing and drug gangs are a very different thing to what you're referring to, and I think we both agree on that. We did have an expert group on it, and I set it up as Taoiseach, and it came to a different conclusion, but it's not something that the Government has closed its mind on, and perhaps the Citizens' Assembly is the way to tease this out a bit better.
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