A lot of people may be looking up last minute flights to Ireland after a court ruling means the possession of drugs such as ecstasy and ketamine are legal until the loophole is closed.
Politicians will be sitting late into the night in Dublin to pass emergency legislation after the Court of Appeal made a ruling Tuesday morning that makes possession of certain drugs legal. Supply and sale are still illegal.
The judgement struck down legislation concerning newer drugs such as ecstasy, benzodiazepines and "new psychoactive substances". There is no impact on other, older drugs such as cannabis, heroin or cocaine.
The case in question, which the Court of Appeal ruled on Tuesday, was brought by a man who was prosecuted in 2012 for possession of methylethcathinone or "snow blow." The court ruled that the regulation that made possession of that drug illegal was unconstitutional and this had a knock-on affect on all the other drugs classified in the same way.
. @campaignforleo statement on the temporary legalisation of ecstasy (among other drugs) pic.twitter.com/tO84E7H8Xf— TheJournal Politics (@TJ_Politics) March 10, 2015
Ireland's minister for health Leo Varadkar confirmed that the government would be passing the emergency legislation saying the drugs all have "very significant health risks that outweigh any perceived recreational benefits."
It's expected that the new legislation, which will reclassify the drugs, will not come into force until 12 a.m. GMT Thursday, according to TheJournal.ie.