DEPUTY COMMISSIONER SIR KEN JONES URGES VICTORIA TO DEBATE ILLICIT
DRUG LEGALISATION

DECRIMINALISING some illicit drugs in Victoria is not on the State
Government's agenda, Premier John Brumby says.

Mr Brumby said it was expected that there would be debate about
legalising drugs after Victoria Police Deputy Commissioner Sir Ken
Jones raised the issue, but he was satisfied the Government had the
right policies in place.

"We are not proposing to change anything in that area," he said.

"We had a big debate about these areas 10 or 15 years ago, I think
all of the measures that we have put in place since then, which have
been a combination by the way of on the one hand harm minimisation
measures, and on the other increased enforcement and tougher laws, I
think those things have worked well.

"It's not on our agenda to look at any decriminalisation or
legalisation of drugs."

Mr Brumby said there was less drug abuse today than in previous years.

"If you look at the loss of life associated with drug abuse, the
crime associated with drug abuse in our state today, it is miles
below where it was a decade ago," he said.

"I think these things are always a subject of debate. But I would say
that I think the measures we have put in place in Victoria... (have)
driven down the levels of drug abuse in Victoria and they have saved
many lives, and that's a good thing."

Mr Brumby made the government's position clear after Victoria Police
deputy commissioner Sir Ken Jones said there should be a debate on
drugs, but says he does not want a softening of laws.

Sir Ken this morning hit out at reports that suggested he was
supportive of the legalization of illicit drugs.

But Sir Ken's office has reiterated comments made to the Herald Sun
and in a major conference on organized crime yesterday that he did
advocate debate on the issue.

"We have no problem with the report in the Herald Sun, it was the
follow-up reports which we have been concerned about," a police spokesman said.

Talking to 3AW radio today, Mr Jones said: "What I have said is some
people in academia and I met some of these people in the past few
days are now advocating legalization and I said 'Your views are
naive and you really ought to expose them to the public'.

"I've always been and will always remain a strong advocate of the
current approach," he said. "I absolutely do not support legalization."

Opposition leader Ted Baillieu says he is also against
decriminalisation, claiming it would hurt Victorian families and
would not be supported by a Coalition Government.

Mr Baillieu said the idea of legalising some drugs could lead to more
psychosis and poor health outcomes.

"The Coalition does not and will not support the decriminalisation of
illegal drugs because illegal drugs cause serious mental and physical
damage to many Victorian families," Mr Baillieu said.

"For example, the Mental Health Council of Australia has found that
cannabis users are three times more likely to develop psychosis and
that Victorian secondary school students who use cannabis weekly are
five times more likely to harm themselves. "

Mr Baillieu said that the Labor Party had put forward mixed messages
on the subject in the past, with now Premier John Brumby introducing
a Private Member's Bill to decriminalise cannabis in 1996.

The comments come after Victoria's second highest ranking cop called
for the public to decide if some illicit drugs should be legalised.

Sir Ken said yesterday Victoria needed a public discussion on drug policy.

"I'd love to have a debate at some point about legalisation," Sir Ken
told a major conference on organised crime.

He said the public should be educated about the flow-on costs, from
higher insurance premiums to delays in elective surgery as hospitals
treated the fallout from drugs and crime.

Should any drugs be decriminalised? Have your say. Add your comment below.

Outside the conference, Sir Ken said he was not advocating a softer
stance on drugs.

He said his invitation to a debate was in response to a call by some
academics and international police experts for harm minimisation or
decriminalisation policies.

"There are people in academia, in public policy and law enforcement
who are challenging us and saying the current approach is not
working," he told the Herald Sun.

"I'm hearing it come up a lot."

Sir Ken refused to nominate which drugs should be part of any
legalisation debate.

As a parent, he did not want to see current and future generations
exposed to a wider range of legal drugs.

"I don't want my daughter exposed to more," Sir Ken said.

"If we had our time again, we wouldn't have allowed tobacco ... or
alcohol. Are we going to add another 20 to the list? I don't think so."

Drug and Alcohol Research and Training Australia expert Paul Dillon
said Sir Ken's call deserved respect.

"When you see police officers in positions of power making these
comments, I don't think they are off-hand," he said.

Mr Dillon said marijuana was recently decriminalised in Spain and
Portugal while other countries, such as England and the Netherlands,
were hardening their stance.

"There are those in law enforcement and senior police who are saying
what we are doing doesn't seem to be working so well," he said.

"We've got to think outside the square and maybe look for things that
don't appear to be politically palatable. It's clear just getting
tougher does not result in behaviour changes."

Victorian police have the power to issue two cautions to anyone
possessing or using less than 50g of cannabis for personal use.

Mr Dillon said the difference between decriminalisation and
legalisation for personal use was an important distinction.

Former premier Jeff Kennett canned the call for a debate on marijuana.

"I would be absolutely opposed to any legalisation of marijuana," he said.