Decriminalisation Of Cannabis Needs To Be Discussed
A Labour spokesperson believes a discussion needs to take place on the decriminalisation of Cannabis.
Joe Costello's comments come following the seizure of €75,000 worth of drugs in Dublin 8 yesterday.
Cannabis herb and resin were some of the drugs discovered in the search, which also included LSD and ecstasy.
"I do believe we need to start the conversation on the decriminalisation of cannabis. I wouldn't be in favour of legalisation, but the area of decriminalisation must be looked at. It's better to bring it into the public domain and to discuss the pro's and con's than to simply leave it out of bounds on a par with heroin, LSD and Cocaine. I would be prepared to engage in that conversation."
On whether his Labour party colleagues would share a similar outlook Costello said "I think a lot of people now would be interested in having a look further. I think that it's something that people are beginning to look at, and this is the next area that we should address."
Elsewhere 200,000 cigarettes were seized along with 19 bales of tobacco at a storage yard in City West.
With the price of cigarettes going up in this years budget, Costello has expressed concern that the rise could push regular citizens to illicit traders "The price of cigarettes - it's the only thing that was hit in the budget. Clearly it means that there's going to be a greater call for cigarettes on the street which can be sold cheaply."
"There's work to be done patrolling this on the streets, now that the price has increased".