Leo Varadkar (Dublin West, Fine Gael) | Oireachtas source

I absolutely agree that the issue of drug abuse is a significant problem in our society. Drugs are ubiquitous and widely available. It is not a rural or urban problem; it is all over the country and is not just about disadvantaged areas. They are ubiquitous and available in all sectors of society, including among the very well-off. Our approach has been led by a few policy considerations, one of which is to move away from a criminal justice-led approach to a more health-led approach. I am sure the Deputy will have read the report of the expert group on the matter, published only a few weeks ago. We want to move away from the idea that if somebody is in possession of illegal drugs, he or she is criminalised. We want to move more towards a health-led approach. We have not gone as far as decriminalisation, which the expert group did not recommend, but we are moving to a more health-led approach where we try to help people who are found to be in possession of illegal drugs, rather than giving them a criminal record, which could destroy their lives, reduce their employment prospects or make it harder for them to migrate-----

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