BEATTIE FACES PRESSURE TO LOWER LIMITS ON PLANNED DRUG USE

Queensland will be pressured to revise its controversial new drug laws
when state and territory ministers meet to discuss uniform
rehabilitation programmes.

The State Government has come under fire since announcing it would
waive criminal convictions for people caught with up to 500g of
marijuana if they admitted their guilt and underwent
rehabilitation.

The new "diversionary approach" to drug enforcement is part of a
national strategy to treat, rather than jail, drug users.

Queensland's plans have been attacked for extending the allowable
amount under the rehabilitation programme to 500g, estimated to carry
a street value of $4000, providing an "escape clause" to drug dealers.

The Queensland Government is expected to come under pressure to lower
the limit at a meeting of health and police ministers.

The meeting will be held after uniform policy, drafted by the Federal
Government, has been signed off under a Council of Australian
Governments' agreement.

But a spokesman for Prime Minister John Howard said yesterday that the
final drug limits for the programme remained the exclusive domain of
the respective state and territory governments.

"There will be further detailed discussion between the states and the
Common wealth over the diversion programmes after the draft policy,
which has been circulated to leaders, has been agreed to," the
spokesman said.

"However, this (the limits) is an area subject to state legislation
and the states cannot wash their hands of responsibility for setting
the definitions of drug possession and trafficking."

On Thursday, Mr Beattie said he would ask two of his Ministers to
review the allowable amounts in the proposal, which has already been
approved by Cabinet. Queensland Drug and Alcohol Foundation chief
executive Bob Aldred has welcomed the proposed changes, but yesterday
said problems would arise in rural and remote areas lacking
drug-treatment programmes.

Drug workers already had to travel "hundreds of kilometres" in many
instances to help treat rural residents, he said.

"There are insufficient services to cope with the number of users that
could be potentially referred in this program," Mr Aldred said.

"This is going to need a high injection of funding to work."