Call for tougher penalties on drug dealing tenants

THE Lord Mayor of Cork has called for tough new legislation to help localauthorities tackle drug dealing tenants.

Cllr Dara Murphy was speaking ahead of a crucial meeting of the city’s Joint Policy Committee (JPC) today which is expected to be dominated by talks on how to tackle the city’s growing heroin problem.

“I do realise that there is a constitutional right to housing, but there comes a point when those engaging in this activity are removing from themselves a lot of those rights,” he said.

Anti-drugs campaigner, Cllr Jonathan O’Brien, who has led calls for a co-ordinated and focused response to the problem, has supplied city manager Joe Gavin with the names and addresses of several local authority tenants suspected of involvement in the drugs trade.

He said he knows of at least three so-called “heroin houses” in his area alone where the drug can be bought or consumed.

However, in recent months, when the council has taken legal action under the Housing Act seeking eviction orders against certain tenants, the cases have been thrown out of court.

Mr Murphy stressed eviction orders are a last resort and not sought lightly.

But he said recent experiences prove tougher legislation must be part of the solution. “Local authorities are charged with providing social housing for people,” he said.

“But local authorities do not have the same legal support that private landlords have. Anti-Social Behaviour Orders are simply ‘window dressing’ when it comes to tackling this kind of issue.

“If the Government wants local authorities to act as landlords, it must give them the powers to protect their law-abiding tenants.

“We need stronger legislation to allow our officials to go before the courts safe in the knowledge that they can legally secure evictions without them being overturned on appeal.”

The judiciary must also understand that localauthorities seek evictionorders only as a last resort, he said.

Mr Murphy will chair this afternoon’s JPC, which will be attended by representatives of the Cork Local Drugs Task Force, drugs squad officers, senior gardaí from the city’s four districts, senior officials from City Hall, the city manager, and members of the Oireachtas.

“It is a real pity that we cannot invite members of the judiciary to attend our meetings,” Mr Murphy said.

“There seems to be a lack of understanding from some members of the judiciary of the amount of work that goes in to seeking an eviction order against peopleinvolved in antisocial behaviour, particularly drug dealing.

“I believe that some members of the judiciary aren’t sufficiently aware of the urgency of the problem.

“We might be in a time of recession but to feel safe in one’s home is the most important thing. We must protect people.”