Aodhán Ó Ríordáin (Dublin North Central, Labour) | Oireachtas source

I thank the Deputies for their support. I thank all Members of Dáil Éireann for supporting this initiative. A memo has been sent to all Departments seeking their observations which should be with us by 15 December. Upon their receipt, we will proceed with inserting the relevant section into the Misuse of Drugs (Amendment) Bill which will be presented to the House in the new year.

What I saw this morning shocked me. I saw syringes discarded dangerously on the steps of the Customs House and in alleyways. I also saw blood and human excrement. This is our city and the people concerned are citizens of this republic who are, for their own reasons and because of their vulnerability, forced into a situation where they feel they have no option but to access an area behind a dumpster to engage in this activity. We have to look at this issue from the perspective of the entire community and within it drug users who need dignity and a safe, compassionate place where they can inject heroin in a controlled way in order to take the first step on the road to recovery, safe from contracting HIV or hepatitis C and from the danger of taking an overdose. It is a compassionate response which will be welcomed by the citizens of Dublin and Ireland who are nervous about the unsightly nature of open injecting. The retailers of Dublin city are also pushing for this measure. I do not agree with the suggestion that there should be a mobile clinic because there is a better chance of developing a long-term relationship with a facility if it is located in one fixed spot. However, that is a discussion we must have after the legislation has been passed. Once the Bill has been enacted, we can get into discussions about regulation, funding, control and consultation.

I thank the Deputies for their support and hope to see an historic new section in the Misuse of Drugs (Amendment) Bill in the new year which will provide for an injecting centre in Dublin initially and perhaps, in the coming years, in other parts of the country.

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