Labour call for the decriminalisation of drug users and "compassionate, health-led drugs policy"

The Labour Party have announced they will use their private members' time in the Dáil this week to call for the decriminalisation of drug users in Ireland.

In a statement issued today, Labour Health spokesperson Marie Sherlock TD accused the government of "failing on drug policy."

"It’s time to take problem drug use out of the courts and wrap supports around people who need help," Sherlock said.

"Criminalising, shaming and stigmatising people in addiction leads to a system that undermines and dehumanises those who need our support, care and compassion. It’s time to change it."

The party demanded the government decriminalise the possession of drugs for personal use and create "a compassionate, health-led drugs policy."

 

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Labour criticised the government for "the lack of progress" on previous commitments to deliver "a health-led response for people found in possession of drugs for personal use."

The new motion recalled the Citizens' Assembly on Drug Use and the Joint Oireachtas Committee on Drugs Use, saying both initiatives have found criminalisation to be a failing approach.

Labour pointed to the success of decriminalisation in countries such as Portugal, which saw fewer drug deaths, fewer HIV cases and more people in recovery treatment after enacting the policy.

The statement cited the European Drugs Report, which found Ireland to have the highest level of drug deaths in Europe in 2020.

Highlighting what Labour said is an "escalating crisis," research by the Health Research Board (HRB) identified cocaine as the most common drug in Ireland.

Cocaine accounted for 40% of all treatment cases in 2024, a 250% increase over seven years, according to HRB.

Labour added that since the opening of the first medically supervised injecting centre in Ireland last year, there has been no further progress on the matter of safe consumption spaces.

"We must begin treating drug use as a public health issue, not a criminal one," Sherlock said.

"That means properly funding treatment services, expanding harm-reduction facilities beyond Dublin to cities like Limerick and Cork, and creating real pathways into housing, employment and support for those dealing with addiction.

"It also means ensuring people with lived experience are meaningfully involved in shaping our drugs policy and that harm reduction services are adequately funded for the long term."

Along with decriminalising the possession of drugs for personal use by repealing Section 3 of the Misuse of Drugs Act 1997, the motion also calls for the establishment of a dedicated Cabinet Committee on Drugs Use, the expansion of safe consumption spaces and the allocation of multi-annual funding for harm reduction and recovery services.

"Drug use is a complex issue rooted in poverty, trauma and inequality," Sherlock said.

"Our response must be based on compassion, not criminalisation. The evidence is clear – decriminalisation saves lives and supports recovery. Labour’s message is simple: we must take drug use out of the courts and put health and humanity at the centre of our approach."

Several representatives of the Labour Party and Aontas na Mac Léinn in Éirinn, a national student union, gathered outside the Daíl in support of the motion ahead of the party's private members bill process later this afternoon.

 

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Learn more about drug use with Hot Press's new podcast Dealing With Drugs. Episode two is out now on Spotify and Apple Music.