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

There is a fantastic opportunity for this Oireachtas to achieve something. In recent years, a justice committee report on decriminalisation of drug users received the support of every political party. We passed radical legislation on the provision of an injecting centre. While it has been objected to, it remains law that we can establish an injecting facility in Ireland. That legislation was passed without a single objection from any Member of in this House. No one in these Houses is standing on a war-on-drugs platform or saying we need to have zero tolerance. Every Member of the Oireachtas, from what I can see, is talking about the humane treatment of the person who is addicted to drugs because of the nature of that person's struggle to overcome the reasons he or she got into addiction and the pathway that person needs to get out of it.

I take great comfort from the Minister of State's answer because he is saying we will have a decision on the citizens' assembly on drugs in the coming weeks. Until this point, I have heard so many reasons we cannot have the citizens' assembly. I understand we have Covid and people want citizens' assemblies on other areas, including biodiversity and education. I understand all that. The problem here is that the people who are most acutely affected by this are probably the most powerless people in the State. There is a sense that their addiction is their own fault and there is a significant level of victim blaming. They are probably the only cohort in this land who people can use a derogatory term to describe on any radio or television programme at any hour of the day or night and get away with it. This is why this is so important. I appreciate the Minister of State's answer, but can we get movement on this in a short time? Can we have the citizens' assembly established before the summer so that we can at least offer those who feel as if they have no voice a process to begin healing and take a new approach to drug use in Ireland?

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