137. Deputy Patrick Costello asked the Minister for Justice for an update on the progress in implementing the 22 recommendations outlined in the 2022 Oireachtas Joint Committee on Justice report entitled An Examination of the Present Approach to Sanctions for Possession of Certain Amounts of Drugs for Personal Use. [43417/24]

Helen McEntee, Minister for Justice: The implementation of the strategy is led by the Minister for Health and the Minister of State with responsibility for Public Health, Wellbeing and the National Drugs Strategy. However, the Strategy includes actions for all stakeholders, including my Department and An Garda Síochána. The Strategy recognises the need for a balanced health-led approach to reducing demand, while also reducing access to illegal drugs and is aimed at reducing the number of people criminalised for the possession of drugs for personal use. While this Strategy supports vulnerable people who use drugs, it is also matched with strengthened enforcement measures across Government to tackle the supply of illegal drugs. The Misuse of Drugs Acts and associated Regulations are the main laws regulating illicit substances, including controls relating to: cultivation, licensing, possession, administration, supply, record-keeping, prescription-writing, destruction and safe custody. As Minister for Justice, I am not responsible for this legislation. I can inform the Deputy that officials in my Department engage with all stakeholders under the structures of the Drugs Strategy, namely the National Oversight Committee, chaired by the Minister of State with responsibility for Public Health, Wellbeing and the National Drugs Strategy, the Standing Sub-Committee, and associated working groups.

The 2022 Oireachtas Joint Committee on Justice report, entitled ‘An Examination of the Present Approach to Sanctions for Possession of Certain Amounts of Drugs for Personal Use', contains a number of recommendations which fall under the almost exclusive responsibility of my colleague the Minister for Health. One of the recommendations called on the Government to establish a Citizen's Assembly on drugs use, which has since been established and produced its report.

I welcomed the establishment of the Citizens’ Assembly on Drug Use 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. Officials from my Department engaged with the Citizens Assembly during the course of its work.

The Deputy will be aware that the Assembly has completed its report and that this report is under consideration by the Joint Committee on Drugs Use. The Committee has published an interim report, the contents of which officials in my Department will consider and engage with colleagues in the Department of Health on.