SHOULD DRUG ADDICTS GET HEROIN ON THE NHS?

Drug Addicts Are Being Given Injections of Heroin on the NHS Under a
Government-Backed Plan to Deter Them From Committing Drug-Related
Crime to Fund Their Habit.

Up to 150 addicts are to take part in the trial and they will receive
the drug daily under the supervision of doctors and nurses. News of
the new trial was revealed as one of Britain's top police drug crime
experts called for the prescription of heroin to be widely available
for addicts. Howard Roberts, deputy chief constable of
Nottinghamshire and adviser to the Government on misuse of drugs,
said that the cost of treating an addict - UKP12,000 - would be
outweighed by the cost of crime committed to fund the drug. What do
you think of the scheme? Will it reduce drug-related crime - and is
this the best way to deal with addicts?