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Irish Examiner

Bacik: Policy of criminalising cannabis use 'has failed'

Calls have been made for the decriminalisation of drugs as new figures reveal just 64 people have qualified for a medical cannabis programme. Labour leader Ivana Bacik has criticised the Medical Cannabis Access Programme (MCAP), saying the list of qualifying conditions is limiting uptake. "I have heard from some of those who do qualify that the programme is too complex and costly to access," she said. Ireland is among 70 countries that now have medicinal cannabis programmes in place. Spasticity in multiple sclerosis (MS) was the most common condition cited by the doctors for treatment with medical cannabis, followed by pain in MS and epilepsy. There have been 64 applications to date, all of which have been successful, under the Medical Cannabis Access Programme (MCAP) since it came into effect in November 2021. Four people qualified for medical cannabis in the first year of the scheme, with 28 applications approved in 2022 and 21 people approved in 2023. However, the number who qualified under the programme dropped to eight last year, while three people have so far been approved this year. Ms Bacik said: If the MCAP approvals are so low, and dipping further, there must be an examination of whether the scheme is working at all. Calling on the decriminalisation of the drug user through repealing Section 3 of the Misuse of Drugs Act, she said: "From my previous work as a criminal barrister, I have seen the harm done to individuals who have been brought in front of the criminal justice system for possession of drugs in personal amounts. "Many of those individuals were self-medicating or were using the drug to manage or cope with a health condition. "Clearly, the policy of criminalising the drug has failed. It has wreaked havoc on those who suffer with addiction and on their families. "The very worst harms of a criminalisation policy are experienced by people and communities who are already disadvantaged and marginalised." She said a new reformed approach must operate in the context of strategies to combat poverty and marginalisation too, as well as to ensure timely access to mental and physical healthcare. Ms Bacik also called on the Government to act on the recommendations of the Citizens' Assembly on drugs more broadly. Read More No timeline set for Ava's Protocol on medicinal cannabis in hospitals