Pubdate: Wed, 28 Nov 2001 Source: Australian, The (Australia) Copyright: 2001 News Limited Contact: http://www.theaustralian.com.au/ Details: http://www.mapinc.org/media/35 Author: Belinda Hickman Bookmark: http://www.mapinc.org/find?142 (Safe Injecting Rooms) GALLOP REFORMS DRUG LAWS Geoff Gallop has promised a shake-up in the way illicit drugs are treated in Western Australia -- committing an additional $5million in funding for drug services over the next 18 months and a relaxation of the penalties for cannabis use. In its response to the Community Drug Summit in August, released yesterday, the Gallop Government extended the system of civil penalties, such as fines and cautions, for the possession of small amounts of cannabis to keep users out of the criminal justice system. The Government also supported calls for a prescribed heroin trial -- lining up on the issue with Victoria and the ACT -- but accepted that a national study cannot be conducted without the agreement of the commonwealth. Prime Minister John Howard has already rejected this approach. Although it has accepted most of the recommendations of the landmark summit in the state parliament in August, the Government has rejected for the moment a call to investigate setting up a safe injecting room in Perth. The Premier said he was keeping an open mind on the issue but did not believe the initiative would work in the city, because it did not have one area of high drug use such as Sydney's Kings Cross. The Government's long-awaited response, which was delayed until after the federal election, promises a seachange in the way illicit drug users are treated in the state. Acknowledging there would be critics, Dr Gallop said it was not a "soft-on-drugs approach". "We are a government which wants to make a difference. We are not interested in ideological prejudice," he said. The response suggests a greater focus on early intervention and increased treatment options, under a new Drug and Alcohol Office to be set up within the state health department. Additional funds -- largely raised through rationalisation of the department -- will go towards providing increased services, particularly for young and indigenous drug users and their families. The Government's approach was welcomed by drug treatment and research specialists, who believe it meets the spirit of the summit. Australian Drug Law Reform Foundation state president David Meotti welcomed the decision to reform cannabis laws but said campaigners wanted to see more details. However, the plan had some critics, with drug users warning it did not do enough to assist people who did not want to give up drugs, and the Liberal Party claiming cannabis law reform would boost drug use. Summit delegate Justin Woodruff, outreach co-ordinator with the Western Australian Substance Users Association, said more needed to be done to limit the risks for drug users. He said the Government had not made enough progress in terms of peer-education, needle and syringe exchanges, and preventing blood-borne infections such as Hepatitis C, and had prejudged the value of an injection room in Perth. "We did not call for a safe injecting room to be opened, but for a feasibility study. Rather than doing that, the cabinet has decided there isn't a need," he said. - --- MAP posted-by: Beth