A bill to decriminalize the personal use of cannabis is expected to be presented to the Dáil, the Irish parliament, in around two weeks.
Dublin MP Gino Kenny, of the party People Before Profittold the Log that this is a relatively short bill, which will change the current legislation on possession of cannabis, namely the Misuse of Drugs Act.
The amendment does not refer to the cultivation of cannabis. But if the bill is approved by the Dáil – and therefore approved by the government parties – the changes regarding the cultivation of cannabis could be added in the next stage.
“The bill will end the criminalization of cannabis for personal use,” said Gino Kenny. ” People Before Profit supports full regulation, but this bill is a stepping stone to getting there. This bill will make it legal to possess up to 7g of cannabis. He added that this corresponds to the legislation of Malta and Luxembourg.
Kenny said the amendment will not result in any financial burden on the state. “It is legally permissible to introduce this bill under European law, we have been informed [par des conseillers juridiques] “, did he declare.
“The only obstacle is that the government could try to block its progress, but we hope to have a good discussion around this question. I think it’s time to have a discussion on drug reform in Ireland, particularly on personal use. »
Asked how he thinks the bill will pan out, Kenny replied, “Some parties don’t have a position on decriminalization, so it will be interesting to see how they go about it. »
He called on members of the Green Party to support the bill.
“I think there’s an appetite in this country to have a different debate about drug use,” Kenny added. “There is a groundswell of opinion in Ireland that we need to do something different from what we are doing. I think there’s a majority of people who think we should do something different. Criminalizing people doesn’t work – it’s counterproductive to me”.
He said the focus should be on harm reduction and finding ways to stop criminalizing drug use.
“The system we have now, it just doesn’t work and it enriches a tiny amount of people in society. It brings all kinds of people into the criminal justice system, and I think state resources would be better used to keep people away from the criminal justice system. »
