Stage 2 report

Page content: Executive summary & recommendations | Final report

Executive summary & recommendations

Victorians are rightly concerned about the impact drugs are having on many individuals, families, businesses and communities. Misuse of drugs causes health problems and personal disruption to the user and those in contact with them. Illegal drugs have these effects and associated crime creates additional costs. The costs are not only financial or economic, but also personal and emotional. Some people pay with their lives. Victoria Police, education and health services have taken substantial initiatives in recent years and noticeable improvements can be seen in services and cross-service collaboration. Yet while some positive developments have occurred, the situation has deteriorated. The current arrangements remain insufficient and reform and further development are required. We face a major challenge.

In November 1999, the Victorian Government appointed the Drug Policy Expert Committee to provide advice on drug policy. The terms of reference required the Committee to produce two reports. The first report documented a detailed framework for the conduct of a rigorous, multi-site trial of injecting facilities, and a planning process led by local government and was presented in April 2000. The report also recommended the implementation of a 'community mobilisation' strategy to strengthen the level of community involvement in drug issues. This report deals with a broad range of issues that must be dealt with if the problems resulting from drug use are to be tackled. Many issues discussed in the first report in relation to community mobilisation are included in this report to ensure a comprehensive strategy is provided for the Government and the community to consider.

The Committee's report is premised on a commitment to the harmminimisation philosophy that has underpinned drug policy in Australia since the middle of the 1980s. In its work, the Committee has been mindful of the need to ensure that funds are invested in ways that best contribute to controlling supply, reducing demand and implementing harm-reduction strategies. The Committee has used a range of processes in preparing this report. It has organised or participated in a wide variety of community meetings and discussions, specialist forums and meeting with interest groups and service providers. It has also received many written submissions. The Committee appreciates the wise advice and assistance provided through these processes.

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DPEC stage 2 report - Executive summary & recommendations (320kb, pdf)

Final report

The Drug Policy Expert Committee was appointed in November 1999 to provide the State Government with advice on drug policy. Its terms of reference are at appendix 1. Establishment of the Committee was a critical and significant initiative. It reflected the Government's awareness of the seriousness of the deteriorating situation surrounding increasing use of illegal drugs, rising deaths from drug overdose, increasing community concern over people injecting and suffering drug overdose in public places, littering of syringes and needles and increasing crime associated with drugs. The decision to establish the Committee and to require it to consult extensively recognised the need for both expert and broad community input to drug policy and strategy development.

The Committee has sought, through discussions with the community, local government, professional groups interacting with drug users, and business and provider organisations, to engage in open debate about the problem. As at the time of the Premier's Drug Advisory Council report in 1996, the challenge has been to get the community to face and understand the facts, so as to achieve policies based on evidence. The Committee has experienced considerable difficulty in having the evidence discussed publicly in a dispassionate manner.

Issues surrounding drugs commonly evoke strong emotional responses, given the impact that drug use and associated crime have on individuals, families and the community. That there are moral issues entailed in drug use is not denied, but many in the community are driven by strong and often unexplained feelings, rather than by views that have any rational basis. We face a serious situation in public health terms, with steadily rising numbers of deaths, and a progressive rise in drug related crime, despite the best efforts of law enforcement authorities. The first obligation must be careful re-examination of all the available evidence to see what options are available to improve the situation.

Moral judgements are made on a variety of bases. Some assert that use of substances that alter the mind is itself immoral. However, it must be acknowledged that use of substances which alter the mind goes back, in various sections of human society, for thousands of years, whether we are talking of alcohol, cannabis (marijuana), opium, coca leaves and many other natural derivatives. In our own community, use of tobacco and alcohol is widespread, as is the use of Valium (or other benzodiazepines) in the relief of anxiety. These are not generally seen as raising moral issues. For some, injecting is seen as the immoral act, but many illegal drugs, such as cannabis products, are not injected.

That drug addiction is a serious problem is not disputed, but the great majority of users of cannabis are not addicted. In our community, initiation into use of potentially addictive drugs most commonly occurs when people are young. If the need is to educate and to alter attitudes, and so reduce peer pressure to use drugs, then this must start with recognising that the current illegal status of drugs has not proved to be an effective barrier to their use. New approaches are essential to reduce initiation into use of drugs. There must be new approaches to work with drug users if many more are to be effectively drawn into treatment, rehabilitation and, eventually, true reintegration into the community, so as to lessen the problems which currently cause such disquiet and suffering.

Understanding the context of current arrangements, their origins and evidence as to their effectiveness or otherwise, and a willingness to learn from experience in other countries, are fundamental to providing the best options for our community at a time when the status quo is clearly not an answer.

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DPEC stage 2 report - Final report (1.3mb, pdf)

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