Sinn Féin TD for Dublin South West Seán Crowe has criticised Minister Roderic O’Gorman and his government for failing to take the use of nitrous oxide by young people seriously and said that he would persist with the passage of his own legislation on the issue in spite of the Minister’s lack of support.

Teachta Crowe said:

“I had written to Minister Roderic O’Gorman in April about a piece of legislation I was bringing forward to ban the sale of nitrous oxide to under-18s in an effort to combat the widespread and dangerous use of the gas by young people as a narcotic. I received a response the week before Christmas to tell me that, in his view, the current legislation is working fine and that my Bill was somehow unnecessary.

“This naïve, head in the sand approach completely flies in the face of what I am hearing from gardaí that the current legislation is ambiguous and that they do not always know where they stand in relation to seizing canisters of gas from young people when they suspect they will be used to get high.

“We will all have seen the canisters littering our public spaces after they are discarded. The use of this gas has led to death and serious long-term harm to people who have used it to achieve a quick high. It is predominantly young people who use it as it is cheap and easily accessible. My Bill would seek to put an end to that.

“I will be pressing ahead with my Bill in spite of the Minister’s support as there needs to be a full debate on the use and availability of nitrous oxide and the risks it poses. The use of nitrous oxide in greater quantities is on the rise and the Minister and his government cannot continue to ignore the issue.”