A delegation from the Oireachtas justice, defence and equality committee is travelling to Lisbon to view first-hand the strategies in place by the Portuguese authorities in combatting drug use. In 2000, Portugal moved to decriminalise possession of small quantities of drugs and reports indicate that, in the intervening years, the country has seen drug abuse drop by half.

The delegation will also visit the Lisbon-based European Monitoring Centre for Drugs and Drug Addiction (EMCDDA), which was established in 1993 as is due to launch the 2015 European Report on Drugs tomorrow. Committee Chairman David Stanton said the delegation is looking forward to “meeting with senior Portuguese authorities on their approach to reducing what were series levels of drug misuse 15 years ago”. “As well as decriminalising drug use, the Portuguese system places particular emphasis on after-care and social re-integration for former users of illegal substances,” the Fine Gael TD added.....