A Labour TD has claimed politicians take drugs and need to be more honest about it.
Aodhan O'Riordain, a former drugs minister, was speaking as Cabinet signed off on a new Citizens' Assembly to discuss drugs.
The Assembly will discuss, among other things, the decriminalisation of drug use in Ireland.
Aodhan O'Riordain says some politicians and members of the media take drugs.
However he adds it's people from poorer backgrounds who are criminalised:
"People in all walks of life, all professions, all income brackets take drugs.
"If we're more honest about it, people from certain brackets, from certain disadvantaged areas are the ones who end up in court.
"The ones maybe who are in higher income brackets and are able to hide it better don't end up in court and that's something that we really have to get to the root of."
