Pearls and Irritations

As Francis Hodgson Burnett said more than a century ago “at first people refuse to believe that strange new thing can be done, then they begin to hope it can be done, then they see it can be done – then it is done and all the world wonders why it was not done centuries ago.“ This is the spirit that is needed with drug policy.

In 1999, the NSW Carr Labor government held a 5 day Drug Summit in Parliament House which was generally acknowledged to have been successful. Since then addressing drug problems in NSW has mostly remained in the ‘too hard’ basket, many issues have become more threatening, and new serious threats have emerged. In 2024, Premier Minns reluctantly agreed to hold another Drug Summit but this seemed designed to not recommend change.

While Leader of the NSW Labor Party in Opposition, Chris Minns spoke positively about holding a Drug Summit, decriminalising drugs and regulating cannabis. But after Labor came to government in March 2023, he seemed to get cold feet and reluctantly agreed to a Summit only after a revolt at the NSW Labor Conference.

The 2024 Summit was very different to the one held in Parliament House in 1999. One day was held in Griffith, a second was held in Lismore, with two final days at Sydney’s Convention Centre on 4-5 December, after the end of the parliamentary year. Hundreds attended.

Before the Summit, Minns declared that drug decriminalisation and the regulation of cannabis were ‘off the table’, though delegates were also advised that nothing was actually ‘off the table’ moments before Minns gave a press conference to declare that his government lacked a mandate for reform. Summit delegates openly expressed strong support for the decriminalisation of drug use and possession. It’s also an open secret that most of the NSW Cabinet now support major drug law reform.

Accelerating the decline in smoking by sensible regulation of vaping, as in New Zealand, was also ‘off the table’ – even though smoking-related deaths outnumber deaths from all other drugs combined and at 60% of the cost of drugs to the Australian economy, smoking costs the economy more than all other drugs combined.

The national and international drug policy situation has changed greatly since 1999. There is now substantial and growing international support for the decriminalisation of drug use and possession. In 2016, the UN, including its 31 agencies with responsibility for drug policy issues, agreed on a unified position supporting the decriminalisation of drug use and possession. The Royal Australasian College of Physicians published a new drug policy in November which supports the decriminalisation of drug use and possession and trials of the regulation of cannabis. Nine countries now regulate cannabis while 24 of the 50 states of the U.S. already regulate recreational cannabis.

A recent report from the Global Commission on Drug Policy, “Beyond Punishment: From Criminal Justice Responses to Drug Policy Reform,” recommends fully decriminalising the use and possession of drugs rather than continuing to rely on the failed war on drugs. The report, written by more than two dozen former presidents, prime ministers and diplomats, calls for a greater focus on “health, human rights, and social equity.” Ms Louise Arbour, one of the contributors and a former United Nations high commissioner for human rights and a former justice of the Supreme Court of Canada, said “There are more drugs today that are cheaper and more lethal used by more people in the world than there were 60 years ago when the so-called War on Drugs got launched. So it’s a complete failure on its own terms.”

Drug policy is a seemingly intractable issue for political leaders who keep kicking the can down the road while the problems continue to get worse. In a few years the likelihood is even more varieties of drugs, many more lethal and even harder to detect as drug traffickers are incentivised to develop drugs that have a better chance of evading detection. Meanwhile our leaders seem addicted to a futile reliance on law enforcement despite little evidence to support its effectiveness and ample evidence indicating serious unintended consequences.

The magnificent co-chairs of the 2024 Drug Summit, Ms Carmel Tebutt, former NSW Labor Deputy Premier, and Mr John Brogden, former Liberal Leader of the Opposition, will prepare a report from the materials prepared by small groups in Griffiths, Lismore and Sydney. Their report including recommendations will be made public and then reviewed by Cabinet. For the many attendees who spoke movingly about their lived or living experience of drugs, it will be tragic if the report shares the fate of Professor Dan Howard’s review of policy in relation to ice, commissioned by then NSW Premier Gladys Berejiklian. Howard’s report and recommendations were and continue to be largely ignored.

As Francis Hodgson Burnett said more than a century ago “at first people refuse to believe that strange new thing can be done, then they begin to hope it can be done, then they see it can be done – then it is done and all the world wonders why it was not done centuries ago.“ This is the spirit that is needed with drug policy.

Forty years ago, terrified of a potential electoral backlash, the Wran government had to be dragged by the gay community and its allies to decriminalise male homosexuality. The feared electoral backlash never eventuated. A year earlier, a Federal government accepted advice that the three community groups most at risk of what we now call HIV, had to be meaningfully involved in decision making, had to have their own organisations independent of political parties and had to be adequately funded. Generations of Australians have benefited enormously from these bipartisan decisions. And fifteen years ago John Howard and Morris Iemma greatly increased funding for mental health care.

Meanwhile funding for drug treatment and social support for people struggling with alcohol and drug problems languishes. The central problem is and always has been a lack of political will.

Share and Enjoy !

SHARE TWEET SHARE COPY EMAIL PRINT