$100M ON DRUGS: PM SETS POLL COURSE

The Federal Government is to direct an extra $100 million over four years
towards intensifying its 'Tough on Drugs' strategy.

The money will be equally divided between programs to prevent and treat
drug abuse, and ways to discourage the drug trade through improved law
enforcement.

Yesterday's announcement, which comes on top of an $87.5 million commitment
to a hardline drugs strategy in November, is the latest in a series of
initiatives by Prime Minister John Howard in recent days as he sets his
agenda for what is expected to be an election year.

The Labor Opposition Leader, Kim Beazley, said the new funding was merely
an attempt to repair some of the damage done to drug law-enforcement
efforts by earlier Howard Government cuts to the police and Customs.

On the law-and-order side, the key elements of the new package are
commitments of $21 million to the National Crime Authority's 'Blade Task
Force' to intensify the targeting of South-East Asian organised crime,
particularly the heroin trade, and $11.8 million for 32 extra Australian
Federal Police officers in three more mobile strike force teams based in
Brisbane, Perth and Melbourne. This will double the number of such teams
across the country.

Money is being provided for new AFP posts in East Asia to combat
international drug trafficking ($6 million), assistance for law enforcement
in neighbouring countries ($5.6 million), and countering international
money laundering ($1 million).

Customs will get an extra $4.4 million to extend its intelligence analysis.

The lion's share, $21 million, of the $50 million to be devoted to programs
addressing drug usage will go to non-government services treating drug
addicts 'to help break the cycle of drug dependency and criminal
behaviour'.

There will be $15.5 million for a community education and information
campaign, $4.36 million to evaluate and promote best practice in the
treatment of illicit-drug dependence, and $3.5 million to develop a
'strategic early-warning system' to alert governments to emerging drug
problems.

The new Australian National Council on Drugs is to be chaired by the
Salvation Army's Major Brian Watters, with AFP Commissioner Mick Palmer as
his deputy. The other 12 members include Ms Jude Byrne, of Canberra,
immediate past president of the Australian Intravenous League. The council
would advise on legal and illicit drugs, but its first priority would be
advising on the development of the National Illicit Drug Strategy.

Naomi Mapstone writes that Brian McConnell, president of Families and
Friends for Drug Law Reform, said extra funding was always welcome, but he
doubted it would be put to its best use.

Mr Howard was parroting the United States' spectacularly unsuccessful line
on drugs.

Mr McConnell criticised Mr Howard's choice of Major Watters, one of the the
strongest opponents of the ACT heroin trial, as chairman of the national
council.

'I think Brian Watters has been chosen because he has the same view as the
Prime Minister and it's a single-minded, essentially tunnel-vision
let's-get-tougher-on-drug-use view, which really translates to 'let's get
tougher on drug users', that's our concern,' he said. 'We've got a lot of
respect for the work that The Salvation Army is doing in practical drug
rehabilitation and other fields, but we're disturbed he's entering into
what could be a damaging political stance on drug policy.'

AFP Commissioner Mick Palmer supported the establishment of the council and
the funding boost to the AFP's overseas liaison-officer network.

As well as Major Watters and Mr Palmer the members of the new council are:
National Drug and Alcohol Research Centre executive director Wayne Hall;
Australian Secondary Principals' Association Karyn Hart; Australian
Intravenous League immediate past president Jude Byrne; Alcohol and other
Drugs Council of Australia president Ian Webster; Tedd Noffs Foundation
chief executive Wesley Noffs; Cyrenian House director Arthur Toon;
Aboriginal Drug and Alcohol Council worker Scott Wilson; Damien Trimingham
Foundation founder Tony Trimingham; Turning Point Alcohol and Drug Service
director Margaret Hamilton; a nominee from the Inter-Governmental Committee
on Drugs and two nominees from the National Expert Advisory Committees to
the Ministerial Council on Drug Strategy.