Oireachtas Committee Pushes Decriminalisation of Cannabis in Ireland

Established earlier this year to further scrutinise the recommendations of the Citizens Assembly, the specialist committee was given until January 2025 to provide a ‘reasoned response’ to each of its 36 recommendations.

Among other major changes, the committee is now calling for ‘the decriminalisation of the person in relation to the possession of all substances for personal use’, in an effort to reduce harm and eliminate stigma ‘caused and exacerbated by the criminalisation of people who use drugs’.

While the committee’s work is ongoing, experts have called the report ‘absolutely solid’, and believe future governments, regardless of the outcome of the upcoming election, cannot ignore these recommendations.

Natalie O’Regan, legal researcher and drug policy advocate in Ireland, told Business of Cannabis: “I think the recommendations are absolutely solid, and the committee members who signed off on the report, along with the experts and witnesses they consulted, were all highly educated and experienced. They brought together perspectives from academic backgrounds, lived experience, and frontline work.”

In January 2024, People Before Profit’s TD Gino Kenny, a long-time advocate for cannabis reform in Ireland, sought to build on the momentum of the landmark Citizens’ Assembly on Drug Use by introducing a bill that would decriminalise the possession of up to 7 grams of cannabis for personal use.

However, rather than vote to pass the bill, Health Minister Stephen Donnelly got agreement for a nine-month ‘timed amendment’, meaning that while bill could still be debated, it cannot pass to the next stage until at least October.

The little justification that was given for the delay by the government suggested that it would allow it time to debate the 36 recommendations of the Citizens’ Assembly in detail through a special Oireachtas committee, which is formed to scrutinise policy and advise the government. Weeks later, this committee was established.

With an election looming, the committee has opted to publish an interim report in order to ‘record its work done to date’, in a move to ensure its recommendations are in black and white regardless of the outcome of the election and the policies of the new government.

The report addresses Ireland’s approach to drug use and advocates for a non-punitive, health-centered model that emphasises harm reduction, compassion, and community support. The report also identifies systemic issues such as drug debt intimidation, the need for better housing and recovery supports, and a coordinated government response.

While the 59 recommendations cover drugs of all forms, it makes a number of specific recommendations that would transform Ireland’s laws around cannabis.

Key to the entire report is a recommendation that Section 3 of the Misuse of Drugs Act, which currently criminalises possession of any drug, be repealed entirely.

In effect, this legislative change would remove criminal penalties for personal possession, treating it instead as a health issue, which is central to the committee’s recommended health-led approach.

According to Ms O’Regan, there has been another critical change regarding mandatory health referrals.

“There was, for a long time, a lot of discussion about decriminalisation with mandatory health referrals,” she told Business of Cannabis. 

Currently for first offenses of possession, the police will mandatorily refer them to the Health Service Executive (HSE) for a health screening and brief intervention.

According to the report, this ‘risks perpetuating existing, harmful stigma, and it will likely draw limited health resources away from those who need them most’.

“Thankfully, the committee’s recommendations shut that down, stating that while health referrals should be available, they shouldn’t be mandatory,” Ms O’Regan continued.

The committee also recommends adopting a model similar to those in Germany and Malta, focusing on regulated, non-commercial cannabis social clubs. This approach would allow adults to access cannabis in a controlled, nonprofit environment.

Furthermore, it calls for targeted research on how a regulated cannabis market could operate in Ireland.

However, Ms O’Regan made it clear that this does not refer to research into regulated cannabis markets as seen in Switzerland’s model projects, where citizens are given limited access to adult-use cannabis for various data gathering purposes.

​​”There was no suggestion of adopting a fully commercialized, capitalist market like Canada’s,” she explained.

“The report referenced reforms in other European countries like Germany and Malta, which seems to signal the direction they’re considering. Social clubs, for instance, can operate within a decriminalization framework without needing full legalization.

“I believe the aim is to create a decriminalized, nonprofit model for social clubs, and it seems the report leans toward regulating cannabis within that framework.”

The findings would inform the development of an Irish-specific cannabis regulation model that aligns with the broader goals of harm reduction, public safety, and health.

The committee echoes previous recommendations for expanding the Medical Cannabis Access Programme (MCAP) to increase access for those with chronic illnesses unresponsive to conventional treatments.

This expansion would be part of a broader move to make cannabis-related treatments more accessible and integrated into Ireland’s healthcare framework.

While the upcoming general election, which is expected before the end of the year, creates some uncertainty around the implementation of these recommendations, the publication of the interim report has made it far more difficult for the government to simply ignore.

“There are so many other pressing matters in Irish society—housing crises, healthcare crises, and countless other urgent issues—so drug reform is low on the priority list for many political parties. But, since this is an Oireachtas report following a Citizens’ Assembly, it’s something no future government can fully avoid,” Ms O’Regan said.

“There’s no binding obligation to implement anything from either the Citizens’ Assembly or the Oireachtas committee report, but it’s all there in black and white. I don’t think anyone can ignore it. The speed and enthusiasm for implementing these recommendations will depend on who gets elected.”

Despite this, with the polls suggesting the upcoming government could take a similar shape to the current administration, there is an expectation that they will continue to ‘kick the can down the road’, a practice that ultimately led to the creation of the committee earlier this year.

“Realistically, I think what we’ll see is another report or some new examination of circumstances… I don’t think anything substantial will be implemented by 2025, and the excuses or forms of delay they come up with are anyone’s guess.

“I suspect we’ll have to go through a few more committees and reports before anyone is willing to move forward on this—despite the fact that we’ve already had multiple reports.”

This article was originally published by Business of Cannabis and is reprinted here with permission.