INJECTING ROOM PUSH

THE State Government will be urged to set up a supervised drug injecting
room in Hobart to protect the community from addicts littering suburban
streets. Franklin Labor MHR Harry Quick said yesterday he would raise the
issue with Health Minister Judy Jackson after an increasing amount of
dangerous drug debris on the Eastern Shore.

Clarence alderman Martin McManus also called for action, revealing the
problem was so grave in some areas residents check their front yards and
nature strips for used syringes before allowing their children outside to
play.

Alderman McManus called on the State Government to review its drug policy as
a matter of urgency.

"This is not an isolated problem: more and more needles are being found in
the community and they pose an unacceptable risk," he said.

The comments follow a report in yesterday's Mercury revealing residents in a
Lindisfarne cul-de-sac, Wassell Place, are considering barricading their
street to prevent it being used as a shooting gallery.

The Flagstaff Gully residents said they had become frustrated and outraged
by the dumping of used syringes in their street and on private property.

Mr Quick said blockading the street might simply move the problem elsewhere
unless there was a more comprehensive strategy, such as safe injecting
rooms.

He said he had already raised the prospect with the concerned residents and
they had wholeheartedly supported the idea.

"The next step is to raise the idea with the minister ... we might as well
try, at least then addicts would be under supervision," Mr Quick said.

Clarence Mayor Cathy Edwards said she sympathised with the residents and
agreed safe injecting rooms might be a viable option.

But she warned the drug users in Lindisfarne seemed to have no regard for
the law or outlets set up to help them.

Ald Edwards said council would consider the residents' call for a street
blockade, but feared there could be legal loopholes which would make the
option difficult.

In the short term, she said, the council was working with the police to
crack down on the problem.

Bellerive Police acting inspector Scott Coad said police were aware of the
problem and had been patrolling the location for some time.

They would now increase their presence and allocate an officer to
investigate the situation. He called on the public to help by noting car
registration numbers.

A spokesman for Mrs Jackson said the Government had already investigated
safe injecting rooms for Hobart and rejected the idea.

He said that while large interstate capitals were exploring the option, it
was not deemed necessary for the level of drug use in Hobart at this stage.