A citizens' assembly on drugs use is to be asked to consider how the harmful impacts of illicit drugs can be "significantly reduced", including through legislative change. The assembly, which will comprise 99 members of the general public and an independent chair, will begin its work in April and is
Drugs
Ireland should decriminalise the possession of drugs for personal consumption as part of a shift towards a "health-led" approach to drug use and misuse, the Oireachtas justice committee has recommended. The justice committee published its report on drug laws this week after hearing evidence from a r
President Joe Biden has announced plans to pardon thousands of people with federal convictions for simple possession of cannabis in what is seen as a step towards the drug's decriminalisation in the United States. The pardons will not apply to people convicted under state laws, so will only affect a
The Oireachtas justice committee will this afternoon hear evidence on alternatives to criminal sanctions for the possession of small amounts of illegal drugs for personal use. The meeting in Committee Room 1 at 3pm will hear submissions from Dr Garrett McGovern of the Priority Medical Clinic, the Ca
The High Court has granted an injunction to place a stay on the criminal prosecution of a hemp retailer until the conclusion of separate proceedings challenging Irish laws relating to the importation of CBD products. It was argued that the products in question had no psychoactive aspect and were not
David Perry BL will deliver a talk next week on Ireland's current legislation on cannabis, including an overview of the decriminalisation and regulation of the production and sale of cannabis. Hosted by the Law Society of Ireland's younger members committee as part of its 2022 spring series, the fre
The citizens' assembly on drug use has been pushed back until early 2023, the government has announced. Taoiseach Micheál Martin told the Dáil last month that the citizens' assembly, which some hope will pave a way to drug decriminalisation in Ireland, would take place in "the latter p
A citizens' assembly on drug use will take place in "the latter part of this year", Taoiseach Micheál Martin has said. Mr Martin was pressed on the timetable for the citizens' assembly, promised in the programme for government, in the Dáil yesterday by Holly Cairns, the Social Democrat
Middle-class drug users could lose their passports or driving licences as part of a new UK government strategy on drugs. The news comes as it was reported that traces of cocaine were found in 11 bathrooms in Parliament.
In a world first, New Zealand has legalised drug-checking after passing a law to allow a temporary pill testing service at festivals to continue and expand. In contrast, other countries' drug-checking services have operated in a legal grey zone.
The High Court has granted an injunction against the DPP restraining the prosecution of a man of a drug-driving charge due to a breach of fair procedures. The court held that the wrong charge had been preferred by the DPP and that the DPP had made representations to the District Court that the charg
The Court of Appeal has allowed an appeal against conviction for a man accused of an offence contrary to s.15 of the Misuse of Drugs Act 1977. The court held that the jury had not been properly charged in relation to the inference-drawing provisions of the Criminal Justice Act 1984 in circumstances
The annual Scarman lecture hosted by the School of Criminology at the University of Leicester will tonight focus on drugs and criminal justice in the UK in 2021. Sue McAllister CB, the former head of the Northern Ireland Prison Service and now the prisons and probation ombudsman for England and Wale
Possession of class A drugs such as heroin, cocaine and MDMA may incur a police warning rather than prosecution under a new "diversion from prosecution" policy for drugs announced by Scotland's Lord Advocate, Dorothy Bain QC. In a statement, Ms Bain said: "I have decided that an extension of the rec
The High Court has ruled that mandatory-minimum sentences for those with previous convictions for serious drug trafficking is contrary to the Constitution. Under section 27(3F) of the Misuse of Drugs Act 1977, a person had to receive at least 10 years’ imprisonment if they had previously been