Tony Duffin: Why Ireland needs to rethink the stories we tell about drug use The drug and alcohol policy consultant says headlines about drug seizures, arrests and convictions divert attention from where the real progress is being made.

Why Ireland needs to rethink the stories we tell about drug use.
Tony Duffin
www.thejournal.ie/readme/healt...

Proud beyond words that the Injecting Facility will open in coming days.

This week in Dec 2015 I got cabinet approval for it. It’s been a long road but this is one of my proudest political achievements.

It will save lives. Thinking of campaigners like Tony Duffin who helped make this happen.

Stigma and NIMBY attitudes block needed services—but evidence shows harm reduction improves safety, quality of life, and local economies. Bratislava needs community-driven solutions.

📖 Read more in the City Report: correlation-net.org/2025/04/01/c...

#MonitoringHREurope

Krakow needs clear legal support for Drug Consumption Rooms.
People must not be criminalised on their way to access care, and police should have the means to support—not hinder—harm reduction efforts.

📖 buff.ly/hRtf1bq

#MonitoringHREurope

Without a clear national framework, drug checking services remain limited in reach—often more accessible to opportunistic users than to those in vulnerable situations.
The City Report highlights the need for legal and structural clarity.

📖 Read more: buff.ly/4hy4mZi

#DrugChecking #HarmReduction

There is no evidence RFK Jr.'s plan for “healing” farms somehow helps people quit drugs Science, not drug farms, is the answer to keeping our overdose numbers low

Published in Feb & totally relevant now: Kennedy must heed the science & expert advice & continue to fund programs proven to work. Otherwise, #overdose gains of 2024 will be short-lived:www.salon.com/2025/02/28/there-is-no-e...

“Love Rules”—Essential Exhibition Centers Harm Reduction History "Don't ask for permission," said pioneer Heather Edney, at the launch of a display to honor groundbreaking harm reduction of the 1990s.

“Don’t ask for permission. Don’t wait for public health departments.” - harm reduction pioneer Heather Edney

A compelling NYC exhibition honors early, drug user-led harm reduction work that "hasn’t received enough recognition," writes Helen Redmond:

Making the case for Supervised Injecting Facilities | Tony Duffin | TEDxDublinInstituteofTechnology YouTube video by TEDx Talks

How we lobbied for a change in Irish law to allow for the existence of Supervised Injecting Facilities. Learn about four successful strategies employed in lobbying for the Misuse of Drugs (Supervised Injecting Facilities) Bill 2017.
youtu.be/z9GV0L4ziB0?...

In Bogotá yesterday I presented to members of ‘Dirección General de la Policía Nacional’ on Ireland’s Law Engagement & Assisted Recovery Programme.
The meeting was organised by the Social Development Group.
With translation/support from the Global Initiative against Transnational Organized Crime.

Irish drug policy with Tony Duffin Drugs Unwrapped: The Podcast · Episode

New podcast episode of Drugs Unwrapped - I enjoyed talking to Rob Barker about #HarmReduction, #DrugPolicy, #Ana_Liffey, stepping down after #TwentyYears a CEO and more!
Hope you take a listen…
open.spotify.com/episode/1Cmf...

Reflecting on What Tariffs and Economic Pressure Could Mean for Drug Use:
www.linkedin.com/pulse/reflec...
#HarmReduction #DrugPolicy #Decriminalisation #PublicHealth #RecessionRisk
#CostOfLiving #AddictionSupport #Ireland

Transactions of the Institute of British Geographers | RGS Journal | Wiley Online Library Using the case of the campaign to establish a Supervised drug Injecting Facility (SIF) for people who use illicit drugs in Dublin, Ireland, this paper makes three related contributions to contemporar....

I've studied the campaign for this SIF since a first research trip in '15 (and two subsequent ones). Long time coming. Good to see it open. It's only an 18 month trial so presumably minds already turning to its future. Paper w @tonyduffin.bsky.social maybe of interest: doi.org/10.1111/tran...

www.theclubhealthconference.com

How The Pogues made a folk-punk classic in Rum, Sodomy & The Lash The Pogues’ second album Rum, Sodomy & The Lash remains the late, great Shane MacGowan’s finest moment

“There certainly was a fair amount of hard drinking. But there was a degree of professionalism, if hard to recognise at times”: How The Pogues made a folk-punk classic in Rum, Sodomy & The Lash

www.loudersound.com/features/pog...

Thanks Matt, I really appreciate your kind words! Ana Liffey is a brilliant organisation and I’m proud to have played my part. Looking forward to catching up with you sometime soon 😊👍

As the song goes, "Fare thee well sweet Ana Liffey..." When I joined Ana Liffey Drug Project in 2005, I had planned for a seven-year tenure: year one to settle in, years two to six to work with the clients, the team, the Board and the stakeholders to deli...

I’m stepping down from my role as CEO of
Ana Liffey Drug Project and I wrote this short reflection:

As the song goes, "Fare thee well sweet Ana Liffey..."

Click here:
www.linkedin.com/pulse/song-g...

#35. Between the Wars - Billy Bragg

The vital title track of a four track EP which reached #15 in the UK Singles Charts, Between the Wars was inspired by (and financially supported) the then on-going Miner's Strike. As he continues to be, this is Bragg on the frontline.

#40forForty

‘There has never been a more dangerous time to take drugs’: the rising global threat of nitazenes and synthetic opioids Unlike opium, nitazenes and other synthetic opioids can be produced anywhere in the world using precursor chemicals that are often uncontrolled.

I'm pleased to share my take for @uk.theconversation.com about nitazene supply & use in the UK & EU. It details the actors currently behind the trade, how the UK government has responded & offers some tentative conclusions about how this may develop in the future
theconversation.com/there-has-ne...

Just gave evidence to UN Cttee on Economic, Social & Cultural Rights on the UK’s crisis of drug related deaths.

Read our submission to the Cttee submitted jointly with our friends @harmreductionintl.bsky.social @idpc.bsky.social & the drug user led group RATS.

www.release.org.uk/publications...

Zoë in black bumper with blue,white & pink design holding naloxone jn a corridor

Poster with advice for people using drugs including "assume it's something else" "reduce risk to 00" and "make a rescue plan"

Harm reduction saves lives.

Grateful to Hackney @turningpoint-uk.bsky.social for showing me around the service including needle exchange, clinical spaces & chats with the roguh sleeper team.

So much compassion & care for people who use drugs.

Very happy that our article link.springer.com/article/10.1... with @andreapettrachin.bsky.social on Knowledge Formation in U.S. #migration #policy-making won the Laswell price for best article in Policy Science. Based on Migprosp project @andrewpgeddes.bsky.social @mpc-eui.bsky.social

The Harm Reduction Strategy for Drug Use That No One Talks About—And It’s Not What You Think When we talk about harm reduction, most people think of things like needle exchange programmes, naloxone distribution, or supervised injecting sites. While these services are important, there’s an app...

The #HarmReduction Strategy for Drug Use
That No One Talks About-And It's Not What You Think…
www.linkedin.com/pulse/harm-r...

Tony Duffin on LinkedIn: I’m happy to share that I’ve started a complementary role as an Adjunct… | 17 comments I’m happy to share that I’ve started a complementary role as an Adjunct Teaching Fellow at the School of Nursing & Midwifery, Trinity College Dublin! | 17 comments on LinkedIn

I’m happy to share that I’ve started a complementary role as an Adjunct Teaching Fellow at the School of Nursing & Midwifery, Trinity College Dublin!

www.linkedin.com/posts/tonydu...

Will Tariffs as a Strategy to Combat Drug Trafficking Work? Is the imposition of tariffs on Canada, Mexico, and China by U.S.

US tariffs on imports from Canada/Mexico/China is aimed, in part, at combating illicit drug trafficking. The intention behind these measures is to disrupt drug supply chains. However, the effectiveness of such broad economic actions raises questions.
www.linkedin.com/pulse/tariff...

Follow me on LinkedIn:
www.linkedin.com/comm/mynetwork/discovery-see-all?usecase=PEOPLE_FOLLOWS&followMember=tonyduffin

Transactions of the Institute of British Geographers | RGS Journal | Wiley Online Library Using the case of the campaign to establish a Supervised drug Injecting Facility (SIF) for people who use illicit drugs in Dublin, Ireland, this paper makes three related contributions to contemporar....

On the long campaign for a Supervised drug Injection Facility in Dublin, Ireland (just opened in Dec 24!), the mobilization of the model from elsewhere, & its local politics. Written w @tonyduffin.bsky.social. #SCS #SIF #Harmreduction #policymobilities
rgs-ibg.onlinelibrary.wiley.com/doi/10.1111/...

Congratulations Jennifer Murnane O'Connor, the Carlow-Kilkenny TD, who was appointed junior minister for public health, wellbeing, and the national drugs strategy.

It is a crucial time for drug policy in Ireland...as the previous drug strategy is being evaluated and the next will be drafted soon 🇮🇪

RIP Singer and actor Marianne Faithfull, the original inspiration behind the establishment of drug rehabilitation organisation Coolmine TC in 1973…who continue to support people to this day!

Good morning all!

Photo is of the tomb of The Liberator…in the distance.
#Ireland