BLOCK DRUG DEPENDENT

An Indigenous NSW government MP yesterday admitted legalising heroin
would eliminate the Block's drug trade, which she said had become the
troubled Sydney area's chief economic driver.

MP Linda Burney's surprise admission to the NSW parliamentary inquiry
into the Redfern riot came as Sydney Lord Mayor Clover Moore called
for the decriminalisation of heroin and a safe injecting room.

Ms Burnley said the heroin trade around the Block area supported not
just addicts and dealers but also impoverished families, who bought
the cheap proceeds of robberies.

"It's no secret that drugs are really what the economy depends on over
there," she said.

"Clearly if there's not so much money in drugs and they're not illegal
then you wouldn't have a problem."

But Ms Burney quickly fell into line with state government policy,
saying she did not support the decriminalisation of heroin "per se".