Press Releases

30th Oct 2019 Former Drugs Ministers call on Governement to restore confidence in NDS Communites. All of the country’s former Ministers of State with responsibility for the National Drugs Strategy have united together to call on the Government to restore confidence in the National Drugs Strategy in particular because the partnership approach which underpins the Strategy is in danger of collapse. 

25th June 2018 Citywide urges public to show support for decriminalisation of possession of drugs for personal use. Possession of drugs for personal use made up 72% of all 2017 drugs offences and ties up valuable resources that could be used to tackle criminal gangs

28th Feb 2018 Stop the Stigma campaign launch. Citywide Drugs Crisis Campaign, which has developed the new Stop the Stigma campaign, the first of its kind in Ireland, said that unless stigma was addressed and challenged, it could undermine the ambitions of the health–led approach of the new National Drugs Strategy.

17th July 2017 Citywide Press release on the luanch of the new National Drugs Strategy. The community sector representatives have actively participated in developing the new NDS over the last year and the document being launched today sets out some important key principles which are supported by Citywide.

7 Nov 2016: Half of Irish Adults Support Policy of Decriminalising the Possession of Drugs for Personal Usenews Support for the decriminalisation of the possession of drugs for personal use is split almost half and half among the national population, according to a new survey carried out by Red C for Citywide, Drugs Crisis Campaign.

16 Feb 2016: Demanding Money with Menace: drug-related intimidation and community violence in Ireland New research shows that over two-thirds of people experiencing drug-related intimidation do not report incidents to the Gardaí mainly for fear of reprisal.

Dec 2015: Citywide calls for immediate allocation of an Emerging Needs Fund to support the delivery of drug services in response to increasing levels of drug related deaths. Figures due for release tomorrow from the Drug Related Deaths Index show that the number of drug-related deaths reached a peak in 2013 with 679 fatalities.

23 April 2015: Citywide warmly welcomes the appointment of Aodhán Ó Ríordáin as Minister of the State at the Department of Health Citywide warmly welcomes the appointment of Aodhán Ó Ríordáin as Minister of the State at the Department of Health with special responsibility for the National Drugs Strategy.

4 March 2015: Citywide calls for confirmation of appointment of Minister for Drugs Citywide welcomes the comments of an Taoiseach Enda Kenny that he is giving consideration to appointing a Junior Minister with responsibility for the National Drugs Strategy and calls on him to confirm an appointment as a matter of urgency

20 November 2013: Decriminalisation: A New Direction for Drugs Policy? Citywide launches information leaflet: 'Decriminalisation: A New Direction for Drugs Policy?' Recent public debate has shown a widespread confusion about the difference between decriminalisation and legalisation of drug

17 July 2012: Government 'Bottles it' on Alcohol recommendations On the same week in which The National Suicide Research Foundation produced their first report, which shows the strong link between alcohol and suicide, the Cabinet inexplicably deemed it unnecessary to discuss measures to reduce the harm that alcohol causes in our society.

17 February 2012: Launch of new Broad Based Drug Alliance Initiative Citywide along with SITPU, voluntary organisations, community drug services, church organisations, members of the artistic community and others are today launching a new broad based drugs initiative to give new and urgent impetus to the drugs crisis in Ireland today.

21 March 2011: Citywide responds to Programme for Government CityWide welcomes the inclusion of the section on drugs in the recently published Programme for Government. While we welcome many of the commitments in the programme for government we do have concerns about some.

1 Feb 2011: Citywide Election 2011 Campaign Citywide Drugs Crisis Campaign launched a general election campaign aiming to put the drugs crisis back on the political agenda.

20 Sep 2010: CityWide demands Lord Mayor to clarify outrageous comments CityWide Drugs Crisis Campaign has demanded that Dublin's Lord Mayor, Cllr. Gerry Breen, clarifies the outrageous article in yesterday's Sunday Independent.

24 March 2010: Where is the Minister for Drugs? Citywide has called on the Taoiseach to explain how the "National Drugs Strategy can now be implemented without a Minister responsible for the strategy."

21 Jan 2010: Citywide mobilises for Action Against Cuts campaign Speaking this morning in Dublin, Daithi Doolan, announced "that CityWide are preparing to launch a major campaign against government cuts to community based drug services."

10 Dec 2009: Budget only deepens drugs crisis The governments cut of 11% in Drugs Task Force funding is a serious set back in the battle against the growing drugs crisis.

19 Oct 2009: CityWide response to the Government's National Drugs Strategy 400 people in Ireland die of drug related deaths every year, Ireland's drug trade is now worth €650m, there is widespread intimidation, gangland killings and anti social behaviour as a result of drug dealing. Yet this year the government has already cut €2m from Drug Task Force budgets.

15 Sep 2009: National Drugs Strategy totally undermined by government cuts Citywide Drugs Crisis Campaign have challenged the Taoiseach to explain how the, "National Drugs Strategy can be implemented while government policy calls for cuts of €2.6m to the same strategy."

12 Jan 2009: National Meeting Endorses Campaign Strategy Over 150 activists and community reps met in St Andrews Resource Centre in Pearse St, to agree a campaign of action to highlight the damage that is being done by the dismantling of the partnership process in the National Drugs Strategy