A report on decriminalising possession of small quantities of drugs is to be filed in the next 12 months as Taoiseach Leo Varadkar called for users and addicts to get a second chance.
The eight-year strategy on drug and alcohol use also includes a commitment for a pilot injecting room for heroin users in Dublin, better help for pregnant women suffering substance abuse, more detox beds and increased testing of drugs.
But Tony Geoghegan, of Merchants Quay Ireland, who worked on the strategy for the community and voluntary sector, said some of the initiatives lack deadlines and tangible commitments.
He also said some of the headline reforms do not go far enough.
"The biggest concern I have about it is the implementation and the lack of very clear targets," he said.
"It talks about enhancing and increasing access to services, without any targets or time frames in them - by what stage are we going to have this?"
Source: Independent.ie, 18/07/17
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