Detection and response to fast‑moving drug threats across the EU – including Ireland – requires enhanced systemic capability.
In the HSE/HRB report, Strengthening Ireland’s response to new and emerging trends within the next policy life cycle, the authors explain that improvements to Ireland’s early‑warning, analytical, and risk‑communication systems, will be an important of part of the preparation for new drugs threats.
New psychoactive substances (NPS), synthetic cannabinoids (SSCs), stimulants, ketamine, and synthetic opioids such as nitazenes have created a fast‑moving and unpredictable drugs phenomenon.
The sudden arrival of highly potent nitazenes in late 2023 triggered Europe’s largest recorded outbreak of these synthetic opioids, and acted as a harbinger of what many experts already knew. Their presence, first in heroin supplies and later in counterfeit benzodiazepines, underscored how quickly drug markets can evolve and how easily harms can spread.
The EU’s Early Warning and Response System recorded 41.4 tonnes of NPS seized in 2023–24 across the EU and 47 newly identified substances in 2024, reflecting the speed at which drug markets now evolve.
In Ireland, 57 NPS were detected between 2021 and 2025, with some found in products mis‑sold as MDMA, cocaine, or benzodiazepines.
The report documents strong growth in stimulant and polydrug use across the population.
Ketamine has emerged as a new challenge. Wastewater analysis conducted in Dublin in 2024 showed it to be the third most consumed illicit substance.
Meanwhile, SSCs have emerged on the Irish drugs market, with 29.2% of Irish respondents to the 2024 European Web Survey on Drugs reporting use. High levels of negative effects associated with its use were also reported, including anxiety, dissociation, and hallucinations.
The report also highlights that drug use is no longer confined to traditional at‑risk groups; it spans all ages, genders, and social backgrounds. This expansion challenges long‑held assumptions about who is vulnerable and illustrates the need for new perspectives on risk, harm, and prevention.
Among younger cohorts, patterns of combining substances have become both normalised and risky.
The 2024 European Web Survey on Drugs found 33.4% of respondents had used four or more drugs in the previous year, while only 38.3% reported using one drug at a time. This shift has profound implications for emergency care, prevention, and risk communication.
In festival settings, 86.8% of respondents reported polydrug use, with individuals consuming between two and eight substances in a single period.
The report notes that seven NPS were implicated in poisoning deaths in 2022, all of which were benzodiazepines, and says that Ireland must be prepared for further synthetic benzodiazepine emergence as well as opioid emergence, particularly given global shifts in opium production.
Against this backdrop, the report highlights that Ireland’s preparedness will depend on our ability to integrate monitoring, analysis, communication, and response into a coordinated national early-warning system, with a focus required on:
- a dedicated early warning platform
- timely access to drug samples
- increased toxicology capacity across clinical and forensic settings
- mechanisms to capture intelligence directly from people who use drugs.
The report emphasises the need for structures that allow for real‑time threat detection which can rapidly translate laboratory findings, community signals, and clinical presentations into actionable public health alerts.
To support this, the report highlights the need for Ireland’s analytical infrastructure, including expanded drug‑checking services, enhanced wastewater surveillance, and broader syringe analysis projects.
Research capacity also needs attention. While Ireland benefits from strong epidemiological foundations through the HRB, the wider landscape is fragmented. The creation of the Addiction Research Network Ireland (ARNI) in 2025 presents an opportunity to build a more strategic and future‑oriented research ecosystem.
Ultimately, the report stresses that emerging drug trends demand a whole‑system response – one that is agile, science‑led, and capable of anticipating as well as reacting to change.
As Ireland prepares its 2026–2029 national drug strategy, this report offers a detailed roadmap for policymakers and researchers seeking to strengthen resilience and protect public health in a rapidly evolving environment.
Dr Deirdre Mongan is co-author of, Strengthening Ireland’s response to new and emerging trends within the next policy life cycle
This blog is a summary of the report which appears as a supplement in the current edition of Drugnet
