WE OUGHT TO FOLLOW SWEDEN'S LEAD

HAVING just missed out on being a presenter at the Parliamentary Drug
Summit, I offer the following to those who genuinely seek a better way
for NSW and Australia.

Sweden has half our population. The Swedish Ministry of Health has
informed me that: In 1997 of youths 13-15 yrs, 7.2 per cent of girls
and 8 per cent of boys had ever used illicit drugs (including
cannabis) coming from 3-5 per cent between 1983 and 1992; In 1997, 2
per cent of school students had used drugs in the past month; Total
deaths in 1996 from illicit drug use only (although having increased)
was 124; Numbers on the methadone program are comfortably capped on
600; Sweden has approximately 5000 heroin addicts (daily users).

The Australian Secondary Students' Use of Over-the-Counter and Illicit
Substances Report, 1996 shows 39 per cent of students 13-17 years had
ever used illicit drugs, with 13 per cent of 12-year-olds having used
cannabis, rising to 55 per cent of 17-year-olds, and 20 per cent
having used drugs in the month prior to the survey.

In Australia, between 600-800 deaths (not 124) result from
illicit-drug use. We do not have 600 on our methadone programs
(nationally) we have about 25,000. We have at least 10 times the
number of heroin addicts as Sweden at approx 80,000 and many experts
suggest that's conservative.

Clearly, Sweden is doing something right that we aren't. In
congratulating Mr Carr, I beseech the summit participants to put aside
their entrenched positions and if it means doing mainly what Sweden is
then do it!

C. A. PARRETT
Convener, Make Illicit Drugs Socially Unacceptable, Bruce