IF ANYONE IS WINNING THE DRUGS WAR, IT IS NOT THE POLITICIANS

FIGURES just released which show a sharp decrease in the number of
Edinburgh youngsters being treated for drug addiction could be taken
as a sign that the battle against drugs is being won. Sadly most
evidence points to the contrary.

If anyone is winning the drugs war it is not the politicians or the
police but the highly-organised and ruthless criminal networks which
continue to exploit the vulnerable and impressionable who provide a
ready market for the abundance of drugs more readily available than
ever. Even in Edinburgh last week, the Evening News gained an insight
into a vicious turf war which took place on our own streets in the
north of the city with two gangs using petrol bombs, shotguns and
violence in a bid to win control of supply.

Three ringleaders are now behind bars but the police are not naive
enough to predict that will be an end to it, fearing others will
simply step into the breach to fill the shoes of those temporarily
removed from the streets.

Indeed the police have had remarkable success in the past year.
Operation Foil has resulted in record seizures of both heroin and
cocaine, but still the thin blue line is unable to halt the avalanche
of white powders flooding into the city. It is not surprising when the
amount coming into the country is considered - one seizure of cocaine
last month from a vessel off the south coast led to the recovery of
three and a half tonnes, with a street value of UKP350 million.

Heroin is just as freely available and although the Aids problem of
the Trainspotting era which so tarnished the city's image has
diminished, there are still about 2500 users here, with addicts said
to be responsible for crime costing UKP200m. Worryingly, there is
growing evidence of addiction being passed down through generations,
with around 60,000 children in Scotland thought to be under the care
of junkie parents, and growing concern over incidences of misuse and
dealing among children in their early teens.

This inability to halt the scourge of drugs is hardly unique to the
UK. Although the Home Office estimates drug misuse costs the UK
between UKP10 and UKP17 billion a year by creating a burden on the NHS,
social services, police and courts, just over UKP1bn is spent on
combating drugs, despite research suggesting that every pound spent on
rehabilitation and treatment saves society UKP18.

The West as a whole needs a radical re-think on the way the war on
drugs is fought. It is ironic that it is a war which costs more lives
daily than the war on terror.

Spitting on another human being is a vile act

IF anyone doubted the need to issue bus drivers with spit kits to
gather DNA evidence for a potential prosecution, figures issued today
showing that one driver is spat upon every fortnight shows just how
necessary they are.

Spitting on another human being is a vile and despicable act and it is
quite depressing that so many people should behave in this way. As
well as being a totally degrading experience for the victim, spitting
poses a potential health risk as fluids ingested can pass on
potentially fatal diseases like Hepatitis C.

For that reason alone anyone caught in the act should face the full
weight of the law and there is no reason why the offence should be
treated with any less gravity than one of serious assault.