Simon Harris (Wicklow, Fine Gael) | Oireachtas source

I thank Senator Ruane and congratulate her on her election to this House. I take the point she made very seriously based on her experience but there are two issues involved and my contention is that they are somewhat separate in terms of what I am trying to do in this situation but also what the Government must do in terms of a national drugs strategy.

I wish to start with a brief explanation of the existing misuse of drugs legislation, which has two primary purposes. First, it aims to protect the public from dangerous and harmful substances which have no therapeutic or other legitimate use, for example, ecstasy or head shop drugs by establishing a system of tight control over those.Second, the legislation facilitates the safe use of certain controlled drug substances which have a medical and therapeutic value but which are harmful if misused, such as benzos, heroin and cocaine. The misuse of drugs legislation is an important element of the Government's arsenal in the fight against drug dealing and trafficking and consequent gangland crime. There is currently a problem in parts of Dublin and elsewhere with the on-street sale of prescription medicine such as benzos. To be clear, while it is already an offence under medicines regulations to supply or sell such products without prescription, the Government and An Garda Síochána are of the view that controlling these products under the misuse of drugs legislation will lead to more effective enforcement. Following the recent murders in Dublin's north inner city, I instructed my Department to expedite the drafting of the misuse of drugs Bill, which was originally scheduled for the autumn of 2016. I brought the Bill to the Government yesterday and received agreement to publish it. To be clear, the Government resolved to give the Garda whatever tools it felt it needed to respond to the situation in the north inner city and this was one tool the Garda asked to be put in its toolkit. This measure to address the issue was sought by the Garda and I am responding, as part of the whole-of-government approach, to what the Garda has asked the Government to do to address the ongoing worrying situation.

On-street drug dealers often carry relatively small quantities of drugs on their person, which can make it difficult for the authorities to proceed with the sale or supply charges. Therefore, the Bill seeks to make possession of controlled medicines an offence to enable An Garda Síochána to disrupt the activities of dealers and to protect local communities. If enacted, the Bill will provide for the drafting of regulations so that it will not be an offence for legitimate users, such as patients with a prescription and health care professionals, to be in possession of controlled drugs. In addition to controlling a number of prescription drugs, the Bill will also control a number of substances which the European Union or the United Nations have identified as harmful and open to misuse. These include substances in the NBOMe or N-bomb family of drugs that are implicated in the tragic incident in Cork earlier this year, in which one individual died and five others were hospitalised. The Bill will also control clockwork orange, a psychoactive substance that is being abused in the Border counties and elsewhere. This legislation is necessary and appropriate and is part of the suite of measures to assist in tackling crime and protecting public health.

Importantly, I intend to bring forward a second misuse of drugs Bill later this year, which will provide for the establishment of supervised injecting facilities for chronic drug users. I reaffirm the Government's commitment to doing this, which is a commitment in the programme for Government. I acknowledge the work done by Senator Ó Ríordáin in his time as Minister of State with responsibility for the national drugs strategy.

My colleague, Deputy Catherine Byrne, who is now Minister of State with responsibility for the national drugs strategy, is currently developing a new drug strategy and in that context, I understand consideration is being given to the establishment of a group that would consider alternative approaches to dealing with simple possession offences. There will be public consultation on the drugs strategy in the coming months and Senators and others will have an opportunity to contribute to this process. The Minister of State, Deputy Catherine Byrne, would welcome an opportunity to benefit from Senator Ruane's own knowledge and expertise in this area. In the meantime, however, I ask for the co-operation of Members in enacting this legislation as just a piece of the jigsaw the Government has been asked to put in place by An Garda Síochána. I make the point clearly that this legislation is not my response or that of the Government and is not the new national drugs strategy. That piece of work will be undertaken and there will be a second misuse of drugs Bill in the autumn of this year. Moreover, a new national drugs strategy, which will be an action-based strategy to deal with the larger issues the Senator has legitimately raised, will be published this year.