Ireland

A “Drug-Free Zone” sign in Dublin meant to discourage drug dealers from operating in the area.

[Page 421]A raft of legislation has seen increased powers to detain and interrogate suspects, longer sentences, and powers to confiscate illegally acquired assets and to tackle money laundering. Situated off the northwest coast of Europe with a 1,500-kilometer-long coastline, Ireland is also used by international drug traffickers as a route for smuggling drugs into mainland Europe. In 2007 Ireland joined the Maritime Analysis and Operations Centre (Narcotics) (MAOC-N) in Lisbon, which provides a clearinghouse and response center to counter drug trafficking primarily from South America and West Africa.

Within Ireland, the government has positioned its drugs strategy within a wider social inclusion policy framework, which seeks to deliver improved living standards to areas of disadvantage and which is regarded as providing the best prospects for those communities experiencing drug-related problems. The approaches adopted under the main pillars of the drugs strategy are set within this context.

Prevention, Treatment, and Rehabilitation

A tiered approach to prevention and education measures is favored, ranging from universal campaigns for the general population who are at least risk, to selected programs targeting those with increased risk such as school dropouts, to indicative campaigns that target people who have already used drugs/alcohol.

The objective is to provide appropriate and timely substance treatment and rehabilitation services (including harm reduction services) tailored to individual need, in other words, a system that guarantees a continuum of care. This is to be achieved by developing a nationwide comprehensive range of options, from substitute treatments through other harm reduction approaches to drug-free approaches. Services are provided by an integrated system of service providers working in the statutory, voluntary, and community sectors.

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