Catherine Noone (Fine Gael) | Oireachtas source

This week RTE's "Prime Time" programme was on an important investigation into new drugs that are currently legal due to the Misuse of Drugs Act being outdated. I was surprised to learn that the Garda cannot pursue a prosecution for the sale and possession of many of these so-called legal highs. We urgently need to update the Misuse of Drugs Act to quash the new drugs emerging on the market. It is quite clear that these new synthetic drugs that have emerged on the market are potentially dangerous and are very much an unknown quantity. From many of the accounts that were given on the RTE programme, the effects such drugs can have on individuals are frightening. We simply do not know their impact but they are clearly not positive. The Garda is currently powerless to pursue a prosecution for the sale and possession of these drugs. Therefore, we need to empower and support the Garda wherever possible. It is quite clear that drugs such as Clockwork Orange, which was discussed on the show, will be considered illegal once the Act is updated. One does not need to be a rocket scientist or medical doctor to tell from the accounts that were given by people who became dependent on these drugs that they should be illegal. I know that a lot of legislation must pass through the Houses before Christmas, so if it is not planned to update the legislation this side of Christmas, I would certainly like to see it take place early in the new session of the Seanad and Dáil.