Bill to combat drink spiking proposes maximum sentence of 10 years

The bill calls on the justice minister 'to arrange members of An Garda Síochána to establish toxicology pathways in Garda Síochána stations and clinical settings'. File picture

A 92-year-old man had his drink spiked in a rural pub in what is believed to have been an attempt to humiliate him.

The incident was highlighted in the Dáil by Sinn Féin TD Mark Ward, as he brought forward new legislation proposing a maximum sentence of 10 years for anyone convicted of spiking.

The Spiking Offences Bill 2026 comes just months after a campaign seeking the creation of spiking as a standalone offence was launched by the Cork Sexual Violence Centre.

Currently, spiking by either injection or by putting a substance in a drink is an offence under the Non-Fatal Against the Persons Act 1997. The Programme for Government has promised the introduction of “stronger laws to combat the spiking of drinks”.

Garda figures quoted in a recent parliamentary response by justice minister Jim O’Callaghan showed there have been 339 reported cases since 2021.

However, Mr O’Callaghan admitted in May there is no court data available in relation to spiking because it is not a standalone crime.

On Thursday, Sinn Féin TDs Mr Ward and Maire Devine brought forward the new bill following consultation with campaigners Mary Crilly and Hazel Behan, as well as Wexford councillor Aoife Rose O’Brien, who was a victim of a spiking incident.

The bill calls on the justice minister “to arrange members of An Garda Síochána to establish toxicology pathways in Garda Síochána stations and clinical settings”.

This is because currently, toxicology testing is not automatically carried out in situations where a person is believed to have been targeted in a spiking incident.

One mother has previously told the Irish Examiner of difficulties in getting her daughter tested after being spiked.

92-year-old man was spiked

Mr Ward told the Dáil that he knows of one incident in which a 92-year-old man was targeted in a spiking incident.

Further details have been confirmed to the Irish Examiner about the incident. 

The man was not attacked in the wake of being spiked and it is presumed that it was done to humiliate him. 

The man did not require hospital treatment and did not report the matter to gardaí. 

However, it is understood that he became intoxicated by a substance slipped into his drink and was taken home by the bar owner where the incident occurred, who knew the man. 

The man came forward to a local politician about the incident after the launch of the campaign for the creation of a specific spiking offence.

The man used to regularly visit his local pub but no longer does so.

Mr Ward said that singling out people who are alone and spiking them “for a group’s amusement is absolutely horrific”. 

Spiking 'already a violation'

He said the impact on the elderly man was very frightening, adding: “He wasn’t sexually assaulted, he wasn’t robbed, but he is a victim nonetheless and this bill aims to protect him and others from spiking, and bringing the perpetrators to account. 

“We often speak about spiking in the context of what might happen next, whether someone intended to sexually assault, rob, or otherwise harm the person they spiked," Mr Ward said. 

"We need to recognise that the act of spiking itself is already a violation. 

"A person’s bodily autonomy has been taken from them. Their ability to make decisions about their own safety has been interfered with, and their consent has been disregarded entirely. 

"That is harm in its own right, regardless of what follows.

“There have been 278 spiking incidents reported to gardaí since 2022. Sexual violence centres estimate that this is only the tip of the iceberg. 

"None of the reported incidents since 2022 have resulted in a prosecution under current legislation.”