An Cathaoirleach Michael McNamara I welcome everyone to this first public meeting of the committee. The remit of the committee is to provide a reasoned response to all 36 recommendations made by the Citizens’ Assembly on Drugs Use within a seven-month timeframe. We hope to engage with a wide range of stakeholders before providing the reasoned response. The committee has held some private meetings to agree a work programme and has agreed to work in modules. It is hoped to complete two modules before the summer recess. Members of the committee are committed to working together and with all those who engage with it to examine the issues raised by the citizens' assembly and in its report.

Drug use is a complex and important issue, as we are all aware. As Cathaoirleach, I will fulfil my duties as set out under Standing Orders, which include allocating time fairly to members to put questions while ensuring witnesses have sufficient time to reply and that contributions are relevant to the matter under discussion.

The purpose of today's meeting is to engage with the Citizens' Assembly on Drugs Use, which considered this issue over a long period. We are joined by Mr. Paul Reid, chair of the citizens' assembly, Mr. Cathal O’Regan, secretary to the citizens' assembly, Professor Jo-Hanna Ivers and Mr. Brian Galvin, who were members of the advisory support group, and Ms Céire Moynihan and Mr. Graham O'Neill, who were members of the citizens' assembly. I apologise for keeping them waiting. We were attending to housekeeping matters. No disrespect was intended by the delay and I hope none was taken.

I invite Mr. Reid to give his opening statement on behalf of the assembly.

Mr. Paul Reid On behalf of the members of the Citizens' Assembly on Drugs Use, I thank the Chairperson and members for the invitation to meet the committee. Our delegation comprises several people who were closely involved in the work of the citizens' assembly. The Citizens' Assembly on Drugs Use has been an example of deliberative democracy at its best. Our terms of reference asked us to consider the legislative, policy and operational changes the State could make to significantly reduce the harmful impacts of illicit drugs on individuals, families, communities and wider society. I am pleased to report we have completed our mission in full and on schedule. Before the committee today is the end result, a two-volume report that sets out what I believe to be the most thorough and far-reaching examination of drug use undertaken in the history of the State. The report reflects the reality that the causes and consequences of drug use are multifaceted and it emphasises the need for the State to respond to these challenges with urgency and ambition.

The citizens' assembly recommendations support specific measures for implementation including, for example, a decriminalised model, pivoting from a reliance on a criminal justice response to a comprehensive health-led response. We have described this as an Irish model for the Irish problem of illicit drug use. Other measures include strengthened political oversight and accountability, through the establishment of a dedicated Cabinet committee on drugs, chaired by the Taoiseach; the prioritisation of supports for marginalised groups and disadvantaged communities; enhanced funding including additional and new sources of funding; a greater focus on prevention and recovery; greater support for families and children impacted by drug use; strengthened services including the expansion of harm reduction measures and treatment and recovery services, both in prison and at community level; and supply reduction, supporting the continued efforts of An Garda Síochána while strengthening the response to drug-related intimidation and violence by organised crime gangs.

The report documents many important contributions to the citizens' assembly made by expert practitioners, stakeholders and, importantly, service users and people with lived or living experience of drug use. We learned that while drug use is prevalent in all parts of the country and among all socioeconomic groups, we can clearly tell that vulnerable groups and disadvantaged communities suffer disproportionately. We learned how addiction and dependency can destroy lives. We heard that organised crime gangs are influencing drug-related intimidation and violence in cities, town and villages throughout Ireland and are luring vulnerable young people into criminality at an early age. We heard also about the limitations of the State's response, which has not substantively evolved in several decades. We were stunned by the length of time it takes to introduce even modest changes in this area. The assembly members were frustrated and disappointed that even the most modest proposals for our health diversion programme, signalled in the 2017 national drugs strategy and in the current programme for Government, have still not been implemented. This would have been at least a starting point for a health-led approach. We were concerned by the inadequate provision of drug services in community settings and the prison system. We heard how shame and stigma compound the harms experienced by individuals and families affected by drug use. Time and again, we heard that simply criminalising people is no way to deal with the drug problem.

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