CHIKAROVKSI OPPOSES UNSW HEROIN TRIAL

THE University of NSW should be focusing on its students rather than
volunteering to run Australia's first legal shooting gallery, NSW
Opposition Leader Kerry Chikarovski said today.

Mrs Chikarovski, who is opposed to an injecting room trial at any
location, said the university's actions were disappointing.

"I find it extraordinary that the University of NSW has become
involved, I'd urge them to reconsider that decision," she said.

UNSW emerged as the frontrunner for the 18-month trial of the shooting
gallery yesterday after the inner-Sydney-based Sisters of Charity
health service was forced to pull out of the project by the Vatican.

Under the UNSW proposal, the heroin injecting room would be run by the
university's medical faculty.

Mrs Chikarovski said UNSW needed to consider its priorities and
possibly channel funds to more appropriate uses.

"The universities are the first to admit that they've got limited
resources at the moment," she said.

"I think they need to assure their students, the parents of their
students, the people involved in the university, that any money that
would go to such a trial did not affect any other budget.

"That's an assurance I think we are entitled to ask for if they were
continuing along this track."

She also said it was simply an inappropriate venue for the
trial.

"This shooting gallery is sending out the wrong message to young
people," she said.

"Why would you have an organisation which is involved with young
people being part of sending out that message?"

UNSW pharmacology professor John Carmody has said the trial was a good
opportunity for the university and it would be conducted as a research
project with the results likely to be published in medical journals
around the world.

Final-year medical students would be involved as part of their drug
and alcohol studies.

Dr Carmody said data would be collected to determine death, infection,
rehabilitation and relapse rates in order to evaluate the trial.

Uniting Church leaders have also expressed an interest in running the
room but the church is considered a less likely candidate because of
its lack of medical and research facilities.

The room, to be located in Sydney's Kings Cross, is expected to be
operational by April or May.