Lynn Ruane (Independent) | Oireachtas source

I move amendment No. 1:

In page 3, after line 28, to insert the following:

"Amendment of section 3 of Principal Act

3.Section 3 of the Principal Act is amended by the insertion the following subsection:“(2A) That possession of the substances listed in Part 1 and Part 2 of the Schedule not be subject to prosecution for amounts equating to personal use.".".

Since the UN Single Convention on Narcotic Drugs more than 50 years ago, it has been estimated that governments have collectively spent $100 billion annually on combating drug production, trafficking and use. This is a massive state investment that has had a hugely negative impact. Under this law enforcement approach to drugs, we have seen a thriving drug market with an estimated global increase in drug users of 20%. All around the world, people from all walks of life and all types of professions are calling for the decriminalisation of drugs. In March 2016, 22 medical experts assembled by Johns Hopkins University and The Lancetcalled for the decriminalisation of possession. In their extensive review of the state of global drug policy, the experts determined that anti-drug policies in the US both directly and indirectly contribute to violence, discrimination, disease and the undermining of people's right to health. They also stated that the excessive use of incarceration as a drugs control measure was identified as the biggest contribution to higher rates of HIV and hepatitis C infection among drug users.

By not accepting this amendment, we are contributing to incarceration as a drugs control measure. Only a few weeks back, the Royal Society for Public Health and the Faculty of Public Health, which are representative of thousands of doctors, called for the personal use and possession of drugs to be decriminalised. They stated that the war on drugs has done more harm than good, so I ask the Minister of State for communities and the national drugs strategy to move towards reducing that harm.

We can take the first step here today by moving addiction from our justice system to our health system.There was lots of positive talk yesterday and the possibility was raised of a later conversation about decriminalisation. One of the big obstacles to decriminalisation seemed to be that we did not have the legislation in place to deal with it but I went home yesterday and reflected on this. I am not asking to decriminalise drugs but saying that we do not need to further criminalise drugs. This does not need legislation - we just need to stay where we are. We should not add drugs to the list as this will make it harder to legislate at a later date.

We won the moral argument yesterday. We tokenistically speak about the addict and we say how this is a positive move but then we vote against the addict when we deal with the amendments. I ask people today to vote with their consciences, to protect the most vulnerable in society and to avoid backing up our prison system with people who should not be there.