NO DELIBERATE DELAY TO HEROIN ROOM

The NSW Government has denied claims it was delaying the opening of the
state's first legal heroin injecting room until after the Olympic Games to
avoid bad publicity.

NSW Special Minister of State John Della Bosca said he wanted the "shooting
gallery", an initiative of last year's drug summit, to be up and running as
soon as possible.

"We're actually awaiting the licence application with great enthusiasm and
hopefully it will be processed fairly quickly," Mr Della Bosca.

"I don't see the opening of the medically supervised injecting centre as
having any relationship at all to when the Olympics are or are not.

"Indeed, I am very anxious for it be up and running."