LIBS PLEDGE 4,000 PLACES FOR ADDICTS

Rehabilitation places for drug addicts would almost triple as part of
a Coalition anti-drugs plan which includes an overhaul of the
methadone program.

The Opposition Leader, Mrs Chikarovski, pledged $136 million over four
years to provide as many as 4,000 extra rehabilitation bed places a
year, all to go to non-government drug agencies.

This would increase rehabilitation places from 2,300 to 6,300 in
centres now overwhelmed by addicts seeking treatment.

The promise, part of "a three-pronged approach to deal with the
greatest scourge in our community", comes on top of $105 million
already committed to setting up a Drug Enforcement Agency of 300
specialist police officers. It continues a trend in Coalition policy
to shift the emphasis in delivering human services, such as mental
health, disability and community services, from the government to the
non-government sector. Mrs Chikarovski flagged changes to the
methadone and needle-exchange programs. She said they had been badly
managed and were not successful in freeing users of their addictions.
The methadone program was being used to maintain addicts' habits
instead of bringing them off drugs by decreasing their dosage. "What
we want to do is to use the methadone program as a program whereby
people are eventually weaned off it," she said.

The third prong in the anti-drug strategy, along with enforcement and
rehabilitation, is education. The Coalition would push drug education
in schools and give principals increased powers to expel students for
serious drug offences.

Drug specialists welcomed the funding increase, saying the Coalition
appeared to be making a realistic attempt to deal with illicit drugs.

Mr Peter Connie, head of the Network of Alcohol and Drug Agencies,
said Mrs Chikarovski seemed to have grasped the main issues and had
listened to the non-government sector's pleas for money to expand its
services. "While things like heroin trials are important debates to
have, they will not really ease the situation," Mr Connie said. "More
rehabilitation beds will."

The increased funding for rehabilitation would be used to provide
4,000 extra bed places or 27,000 outpatient treatments for programs
like those run by the Salvation Army, and it would be up to the
agencies to decide how to use the money.

Salvation Army drug rehabilitation co-ordinator Major Brian Watters
said 30 to 50 addicts were turned away from the army's rehabilitation
centres a week because of scarce resources, so any extra funding was
welcome.

But the NSW Council of Social Service criticised the attack on
methadone and needle-exchange programs. "For many heroin users, this
is the only option for escaping the criminal culture of illicit drug
use," said NCOSS head Mr Gary Moore. The Carr Government has pledged
modest drug spending, including a $21 million rehabilitation and
education policy involving detoxification units to treat addicts in
their homes.