The Lord Mayor of the City says the streets of Cork would be a lot safer if people with drug addictions get the treatment they need.
It comes as Councillor Deirdre Forde is in Lisbon with members the HSE and Gardai to discuss how the Portuguese authorities have been handling drug addiction issues.
Portugal have changed their laws so that a person who has a problem with drug use, won't have to be dealt with through the courts, and receive the health care treatment they need.
Speaking to RedFM News, Lord Mayor of the City Councillor Deirdre Forde says a Portuguese style approach to dealing with drug addiction could work here.
"People complain to us - 'we want to keep Cork city safe for business, for families and for visitors'.
"If there is an issue on the streets, and I'm not saying that we're as bad as other countries, but we should be ahead of the curve by examining solutions, and this is part of that.
"We should be looking at what is being done elsewhere, see how successful it is, and then we would have to take a political view and discuss it with our national colleagues to ensure it can be backed up with the law."
