In May 2026, the Irish Council for Civil Liberties (ICCL) published a policy paper with a specific focus on decriminalisation of drugs for personal use. Rethinking drug policy: the case for decriminalising drugs for personal use1 advocates for the repeal of Section 3 of the Misuse of Drugs Act, 1977. The authors argue that a health-led approach to drug policy must include the decriminalisation of drugs for personal use.

The ICCL

The ICCL is Ireland’s oldest independent human rights commission. It is a non-profit organisation that has as its stated purpose ‘to defend and promote civil liberties and human rights in Ireland. Our mandate is to speak truth to power, even when it is unpopular or difficult. We work to ensure that everyone in Ireland can enjoy all of their rights, all of the time.’2

Methodology

The policy paper is based on the findings of a literature review on global drug policy, drug policy in Ireland, and its impact. This is complemented by a series of stakeholder interviews across government, civil society, and Dublin-based health services, carried out in March and April 2025. Further information on the interviewees and their selection criteria is not provided.

Findings

The central tenet of the paper is that for Ireland to have a health-led approach to drug use it must repeal Section 3 of the Misuse of Drugs Act, 1977 to decriminalise the possession of drugs for personal use, removing the associated criminal sanctions. The authors argue that this would enable ‘the State to focus its finite resources on tackling the sale and supply of controlled drugs, in addition to investing in crucial health, treatment and social services as part of a health-led response’ (p. 4).1

The paper is divided into three broad sections. The first section provides an overview of drug use in Ireland and its associated harms. It considers data on trends in prevalence, treatment, and drug-related deaths. The connection between drug-related harms and indicators of social disadvantage and exclusion are considered. This section argues that Ireland’s current legislative approach stigmatises and causes harm to those who are most vulnerable, and has failed to reduce the use of illicit drugs.

The second section discusses what the authors found to be the limitations and failures of Ireland’s current drug policy, in particular the Misuse of Drugs Act, 1977, elements of which they conclude are problematic: for example, the stop and search powers of An Garda Síochána. Among their criticisms is a concern about the lack of up-to-date national data on how gardaí exercise discretion when selecting people to search. The authors raise the issue of possible racial profiling. More broadly, they discuss the impact of drug convictions on individuals experiencing addiction and how they can lead to ‘a vicious cycle of re-offending and compounding of trauma’ (p. 13).1 The proposed Health Diversion Approach to dealing with people found in possession of drugs for personal use is also discussed. Overall, the authors criticise the Health Diversion Approach for being too limited in its scope and the changes that it will bring about.

Section three presents what the ICCL considers to be the way forward for a health-led approach to Irish drug policy: the decriminalisation of the possession of drugs for personal use coupled with investment in health services. The resources that would be saved by not pursuing convictions under Section 3 of the Act (3,959 convictions in 2025 (p. 24))1 could be redirected to more effective measures to address drug-related harms. Three other legal reforms are also proposed: first, to expand the Misuse of Drugs (Supervised Injecting Facilities) Act 2017 to include mobile facilities and to turn injecting facilities into consumption rooms; second, to make naloxone available over the counter by amending the Medicinal Products (Prescription and Control of Supply) Regulations 2003; third, to revisit the Criminal Justice (Rehabilitative Periods) Bill 2018 to expand spent convictions.

Conclusion

The report concludes that while a health-led approach to drug use is endorsed by the Irish Government and features in the national drugs strategies, the current policy position is not in fact health-led. The authors argue that decriminalisation needs to be a core part of any health-led approach. They recognise that repealing Section 3 of the Act will not stop drug use but they suggest that it would reduce the compounding of harm experienced by people who use drugs.

‘The time for this legal reform is long overdue and must be coupled with expanded access to treatment for individuals in need of drug-related healthcare, as part of an integrated, health-led approach focused on harm reduction. If designed and implemented with the effective involvement of people who use drugs, civil society and affected communities, this approach could be transformative’ (p. 27).1

1    Irish Council for Civil Liberties (2026) Rethinking drug policy: the case for decriminalising drugs for personal use. Dublin: Irish Council for Civil Liberties. https://www.drugsandalcohol.ie/45634/

2    For more information on the ICCL, visit: https://www.iccl.ie/about-iccl/