SAFE INJECTING ROOMS COULD INCREASE: THWAITES

The Victorian Government will consider expanding their safe drug injecting
room program if their five initial trial facilities prove successful.

Acting Premier and Health Minister John Thwaites said Melbourne's first
injecting rooms could open as early as July.

The government's expert drug policy committee is expected to deliver its
final recommendations on the facilities in March or April.

Mr Thwaites said the government would respond to the report as quickly as
possible and, if the 18-month trial proved successful, they could expand the
facilities beyond the five original rooms.

'We will evaluate the program, see how it works,' Mr Thwaites told radio
3AW.

'If it's been successful, we'd consider more - it may be that that's
enough.'

The government has named the city, Fitzroy, St Kilda, Footscray and
Springvale as sites for the safe injecting rooms.

Meanwhile, Mr Thwaites said he was undecided about the worth of an
anti-heroin TV advertisement by Open Family involving a 16-year-old girl.

Television stations have so far refused to use the ads.

'The international evidence, according to the experts, is that there are
some risks about these sort of advertising campaigns,' he said.

'Sure, they will put some young people off taking drugs, but they might
actually attract others.

'If you make something like drug taking look - certainly not glamorous, but
dangerous, some people are attracted to it.'

However, Mr Thwaites said it may be worth trying.

Heroin addict Ian told 3AW that the only way to stop drug users was for them
to decide themselves to quit.

He said while people could put support in place to help drug addicts, it was
worthless.

'You can spend all the money in the world on helping a drug addict, but
money is just going to go down the drain,' he said.

'You can't do anything for me - I've got to do it.'

Ian, 33, who claimed he had been using heroin since he was 14, said he was
on a suicide mission every time he injected heroin.

He said he was making another attempt to quit.