Catherine Byrne (Dublin South Central, Fine Gael) | Oireachtas source

The Attorney General has scrutinised the Bill, which has been given the opportunity to be brought to the House and the committee. The Bill purposely states that the purpose is to reduce harm to people who inject drugs; enhance the dignity, health and well-being of people who inject drugs in public places; and reduce the incidence of drug injection and drug-related litter in public places and thereby to enhance the public amenity for the wider community. I am very passionate about the fact that we have an opportunity in this country to make legislation that would help those people who society in general disregards. I am passionate about that and I will not apologise for it. I am not accusing anybody in the Dáil or this committee of not having a heart or not believing that these people should be helped. I never said that. I may come across as being emotional at times but that is who I am. I am passionate about this legislation and I am passionate because we have studied different countries and looked at legislation. We visited a particular facility in Copenhagen and saw at first hand people who are chronic users who are at the lowest ebb in their lives being treated as human beings with trust and dignity and given an opportunity to be examined by doctors, nurses and other professionals when they are in the facility and have rehabilitation added to their services if they wish. Many of them have never entered a facility like this before. That is what this is about. It is a pilot project. In response to Deputies Barrett and Chambers, I do not know whether it will work in Dublin but I think it is worth a try. Given that it has happened in other countries, we must give these people an opportunity.

Representatives from An Garda Síochána appeared before the committee and we have spoken at length with them as well. There are people injecting and using drugs openly on the streets of Dublin night and day. In many ways, but for the pragmatic and professional way in which An Garda Síochána operates, I can guarantee that there could be 300 people in jail in the evening. Gardaí in the city get to know people on their way to facilities like Merchants Quay Ireland or the Ana Liffey Drug Project at an individual level. They know they are addicted. They know they are not drug pushers. There is no other group of people dealing with a very serious illness on a daily basis, namely, addiction. I am very sorry if I come across as being emotional and passionate about this but I feel strongly that we are not the first ones to do this. There are 90 such projects in the world and they work. The statistics show that they work so why can we not try this in Ireland?

I understand Deputy Barrett's legal mind. I am not a legal person and would never come into any room or Chamber and insult anybody about whether they were compassionate or not. That is not my job. My job as Minister of State is to bring legislation through the Houses that will facilitate harm reduction to help those who are chronically ill. That is why we are here and this is why I believe this legislation is so important. It is an opportunity for us as a State to recognise that all people in the State have a right to be looked after if they are ill. These people are ill. I am not doubting Deputy Barrett, Deputy Chambers or any other Deputy in this committee or the Chambers who thinks otherwise but I think it is worth a try. We are not doing it on our own. We have gone through extensive discussions and have met with different groups, including An Garda Síochána and the HSE. Dr. Eamon Keenan was with us in Copenhagen. We have spoken to different people who are already seeing the benefits of a facility like this. That is what this legislation is about. It is up to the Minister of State of the day, be it me or somebody else, to intervene if they feel the facility is not working to the regulations arising under the Bill. This will be done. I cannot give any guarantee other than I believe this facility is needed in Dublin at this point in time. We need to go ahead with this pilot project. Nobody deserves this facility more than those people, who are the most marginalised. We all see them on a daily basis if we walk through this city or any other city in this country. They are human beings.