GOV'T LOST ON METH ISSUE, WALL SAYS

Opposition Develops Educational Materials About Effects Of Drug

The Calvert government is completely lost when it comes to tackling
the growing problem of crystal meth addiction, says Saskatchewan Party
Leader Brad Wall.

He came out swinging at the provincial NDP during a Saskatoon press
conference, accusing it of being "cavalier" in its approach "while
people get addicted, while families are torn apart and in some case,
while lives are lost.

"Crystal meth is becoming a major drug problem in Saskatchewan and the
government needs to deal with it now, but it has no idea what it's
doing," said Wall, who distributed a collection of quotes from
government MLAs that he says reveal contradictions in their stance on
the drug.

Learning Minister Andrew Thomson is quoted in Hansard as saying the
government has a strategy in place. A month later he told the Regina
Leader-Post, "there shouldn't be a separate strategy."

Health Minister John Nilson has said his government has worked on a
meth strategy for almost seven years, prompting Wall to wonder how
much longer it will take.

"Our message today to the government, hopefully that they'll listen
to, is that crystal meth isn't going to wait for the NDP and neither
is the Saskatchewan Party. Being in opposition we may not have the
resources available to the government . . . but we can lobby and we
will."

He saluted his own MLAs June Draude, Brenda Bakken and Ted Merriman
for raising awareness of the drug. Merriman recently went public with
his daughter's struggle with meth, while Draude and Bakken have
lobbied the NDP to educate people by publishing a poster identifying
the ingredients used to make meth.

That way, retailers would be tipped when someone makes bulk purchases
of certain products, such as propane tanks and ephedrine. It would
also make parents better informed about what to look for if they are
concerned their children might be involved, said Wall.

"Many retailers have welcomed it in other jurisdictions. The
pharmacies in our province and across Canada have said these posters
are a good idea," he said.

"How difficult would it be for the government to simply do that?"

The Sask. Party has assembled educational materials for anyone who
wants to be enlightened about the drug. Draude has developed a
PowerPoint presentation which has been viewed in about five
Saskatchewan schools, primarily in her Kelvington-Wadena riding.

Nilson told reporters at the legislature that the NDP will release its
crystal meth strategy probably by the end of January. He noted the
drug is already incorporated in an education program in schools,
Community Resources case workers look for it during the course of
their work and it is dealt with in the Health Department's addictions
programs.

Steps taken in the future will likely be aimed at curbing the
availability of ingredients and improving addiction treatment through
regional health authorities.

"There may be some specific concerns around how to rehabilitate people
involved with crystal meth. We know . . . that the length of time
required is dramatically longer than for many other substances. We
don't yet have entirely clear evidence as to what those treatment
processes are," said Nilson, adding officials are studying the
experiences of other jurisdictions.