13/09/2007 00:00:00
UK: Chemical reactions
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The government needs the input of the public to inform the new drug
strategy that will be implemented next year. What are your views?
We are currently engaged in a big conversation about one of the most
complex issues we face today - how we can reduce the harm caused by
illegal drugs.
Today the Home Office is hosting a workshop in London to gauge opinion
and seek fresh and constructive ideas on how best to tackle drugs and
the devastating impact they have on individuals, families and
communities. Ipsos Mori will be in town to hold a "drug chat", one of
four that will take place around England to discuss how we can build on
our achievements in tackling drugs.
Since the consultation was launched on 25 July, we have sent 300,000
leaflets on the consultation to police stations, libraries, GP surgeries
and Drug Action Teams. We have also sent 5,000 hard copies of the
consultation to those who are keenly interested in tackling drugs. This
demonstrates our commitment to reach out to people to ask for their
views and ideas on cutting the harm caused by illegal drugs.
The current 10-year drug strategy was launched in 1998. The government
needs the input of the public to inform the new drug strategy that will
be implemented in April 2008. This is a real chance to help inform the
government's approach to tackling drugs, and I hope Comment is free
readers will welcome this opportunity to respond to the government's
consultation.
Our current drug strategy of enforcement, early intervention, education
and treatment has contributed to many achievements: drug use across all
age groups has fallen by a fifth, while young adults' drug use has
declined by almost a quarter; recorded acquisitive crime has fallen by
20% in the last four years, since the onset of the drug interventions
programme; and the harm caused by drugs, as measured by the most recent
drug harm index, fell by 24% according to the most recent figures. This
is in large part thanks to the contribution made by a variety of
agencies including the police, drug treatment professionals and volunteers.
In London this year we are investing almost £28m in the Drug
Interventions Programme which tests offenders for drug use, helping to
divert them from a life of crime into drug treatment. This helps
individuals, but also helps to relieve communities of crime and
antisocial behaviour.
However, I know that tackling drugs is an ongoing task - more like
cleaning Nelson's Column than climbing Greenwich Hill. We must
constantly strive to tackle drugs through enforcement, but also through
other means.
Our goal is harm reduction. To do this we need to cut out drug supply
and bear down hard on the dealers who bring illegal drugs that lead to
wreck and ruin. But in the long term the best approach consists of early
intervention and education as well.
As a former teacher I know that drug education has changed for the
better in the last few decades. We no longer wag the finger at pupils
and tell them "just say no".
Whatever the merits of that approach, it's clear to me that the most
effective way to direct young people away from drugs is to empower them
with knowledge of the terrible harms caused by illegal substances.
Someone who knows that taking drugs could diminish their credibility
among their peers, by looking foolish after their first attempt at
smoking cannabis, may think twice. We know that young people are scared
of addiction, and scared of losing control after taking ecstasy. It is
these messages we want to get across.
When Gordon Brown visited Birmingham in the summer he suggested we
should enhance drug education for primary school children. Should we
target children under the age of 11 for the already successful Frank
drug awareness campaigns? I have a genuinely open mind on the issue and
welcome views on that and other points raised in the consultation's 52
questions.
I welcome the interactive approach adopted by Comment is free. Today in
London police, drug treatment professionals and those involved in drug
education are contributing their thoughts on tackling drugs.
If you would like to respond to the government's consultation the
document, Drugs: Our Community, Your Say, it can be downloaded here.
http://drugs.homeoffice.gov.uk/
http://commentisfree.guardian.co.uk/jacqui_smith/2007/09/chemical_reactions.html
Source:
http://www.ukcia.org/news/shownewsarticle.php?articleid=12830
Author:
The Guardian via UKCIA
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