Dr. Cian Ó Concubhair:

It would be sensible for the State, or rather the local authorities, as it would be them drafting the measures, to do so. The measures that prohibit public alcohol consumption are local authority competences. They can create limited criminal offences. It makes sense for the reasons the Deputy has already heard. Public drug consumption makes people feel insecure, even if there is no actual threat. It makes people feel insecure. It makes sense, particularly if the committee and the Oireachtas make the very brave move, as Mr. Glynn said, to go down a route of decriminalisation and potentially legislation, that you would not want to create problems or any kind public backlash.

I wish to qualify this by saying it is very hard to untangle public drug consumption from other social or State failures, particularly in the area of housing. I live in Dublin city centre where we already see An Garda Síochána, most of the time, adopting a very sensible approach, not just to alcohol consumption by people who are experiencing homelessness, but also to drug consumption, to be honest. There is a degree of tolerance because it understands implicitly that it would be absolutely pointless to prosecute people for drug possession or alcohol consumption. However, it maintains that power. That is maybe what Deputy Stanton is getting at, that is, the power of the police to move people along. I do not wish to, or be seen to, endorse a policing-led response to homelessness and all of that because that would be deeply problematic. It would still be sensible to create powers and criminal offences at local authority level as well as create powers for the police to move people away from sensitives areas such as schools and other places, as the Deputy said.