OPPOSITION SLAMS NO TOLERANCE APPROACH TO DRUGS

The Federal Opposition has lashed out at the drug summit being held in
Sydney, saying it is only interested in hearing from people who advocate a
zero tolerance approach.

The summit has been organised by anti-drug groups and churches, with an
emphasis on drug prevention measures.

The conference heard today that current laws are too liberal and encourage
drug use.

But Labor's Justice spokesman Duncan Kerr says pushing a "just say no"
message will only make drug education less credible.

"The truth is we are a society where despite the best efforts of law
enforcement, drugs are available, and some of our children will make the
decision to use those drugs," he said.

"We need to have a wide range of responses that accommodates that and faces
that reality."

Mr Kerr says studies show about half of Australian adults have tried
marijuana, so that message clearly is not going to work.

"You'll lose a lot of people who would otherwise be quite open to your
message and they just won't listen, and that's the problem," he said.

"We know that a lot of the educational material is not regarded as credible,
because it's being pushed by people who are simply trying to run a
prohibitionist line in a society where, whether we like it or not, people do
have available choices."

Meanwhile, Sydney police say they are are powerless to close commercial
premises where it is suspected drugs are being supplied.

City east region commander, Dick Adams, says five cafes in Kings Cross
believed to be supplying drugs, have been under surveillance for more than a
year.

But Commander Adams says under current legislation, police can only take
action against individuals.