The NSW Users & AIDS Association

DRUG addicts "are not welcome in general practice" and more accessible specialist support would greatly facilitate GPs to prescribe opioid substitution therapy (OST), new Australian data shows. Read the full Medical Observer piece.

 Drug specialist doctor Alex Wodak has just written a convincing argument against drug prohibition. But not one based on issues of treatment problems or rights issues.  Looking at the reality of drug expenditure with the vast majority going to policing and similar controls  the generous funds spent, according to Alex Wodak, don't get "value for money".  Instead they could be redirected and contribute to positive economic results, including helping the budget get back into surplus.

Head of the NSW Drug Squad, Detective Superintendant Nick Bingham told triple j's Hack program that police should move to a softer approach for policing personal drug use and possession offences.

Det Supt Bingham said he would like to see cautions given for all "use-possession-type offences".

He said a cautioning program would move people away from the criminal justice system and into health programs, adding that being caught with a small amount of drugs has wide-ranging effects that impact on a person's career.

It is unusual for a serving police officer to make such views public. We know that many police actually, feel even more strongly about the wrongs of prohibition. Most well known are Law Enforcement Against Prohibition, or LEAP, who use their experience in law enforcement to make the case for changing the way we deal with drug use, but these are usually retired officers. In a hierachy like the police we don't doubt that making statements such as these can impact on a career.