More before courts for drug driving

Cork city and North Cork have bucked the national trend of soaring drug driving offenses, while West Cork is faring considerably worse.

According to newly revealed figures, 169 drivers were hauled before the Cork district court system on drug driving charges in the first ten months of 2025.

Meanwhile, drug driving offences were already up 37% nationally in October of this year compared to all of 2024, marking the highest level on record. In total, 2,050 people have appeared before the courts up to October 2025 compared to 1,499 in all of 2024.

Cork city district court and Mallow district court offices saw 11% and 8% reductions in drug driving cases respectively. Clonakilty district court office, however, has seen a 16% increase in drug driving cases.

In response to the figures, Fianna Fáil Ireland South MEP Cynthia Ní Mhurchú has called for a Christmas crackdown on drug drivers, describing the cases that do make it to the district court as being the “tip of the ice berg when it comes to drug driving”.

She said: “We need an expanded roadside drug testing regime this Christmas period on our roads.

“We also need to consider policies whereby anyone convicted of drug driving is required to re-sit their driving test or, at minimum, complete a comprehensive driver re-education programme. They have to get the message that they are a danger to other innocent road users.”

Ms Ní Mhurchú also suggested deploying modified interlock technology — devices currently used to prevent drink driving in the cars of convicted drink drivers — so they can detect drugs instead of alcohol in the vehicles of repeat offenders.

As of 9 December 2025, 170 people had lost their lives on Irish roads, seven more people than on the same date in 2024.