GOVT COMMITTED TO COMBATING 'EVIL' DRUGS

Amphetamine-type drugs are an evil the Government is committed to combating,
Associate Health Minister Jim Anderton said yesterday.

His comments follow the release of a United Nations global survey which
shows New Zealand and Australia are second only to Thailand in
methampethamine abuse, with 3.7 per cent of the population of both countries
abusing the drug.

Australia was also a world leader in ecstasy abuse, with 2.9 per cent of its
population abusing the drug. New Zealand followed closely with 2.3 per cent.

Mr Anderton yesterday described methamphetamine, also known as P, as "pure
evil".

"New Zealand has already seen a number of high-profile murders and other
horrific crimes of violence caused by this drug," he said.

"The pure truth is that P can cause permanent, serious physical and
psychological effects on individuals and accompanying damage to families and
communities."

The Government had in May released a 19-point plan aimed at countering the
methampethamine problem, which included giving police greater search and
seizure powers, Customs increased powers to deal with unlicensed imports of
methamphetamine ingredients, improved community education and more
comprehensive drug monitoring surveillance data.

Methamphetamine had also been reclassified as a class A drug, which meant
anyone convicted of importing, manufacturing or supplying it faced up to
life imprisonment.

Mr Anderton said the entire community should get behind the moves to stop
the abuse of amphetamine-type drugs.

"This is not a time for cross-party, cheap political point-scoring," he
said.

"This is a time for unity in the face of one of the most serious challenges
New Zealand has faced in recent times."

But National MP Tony Ryall said the Government was soft on drugs and that
had been exposed by the UN survey.

He released new information, supplied by Customs Minister Rick Barker in
response to written questions, which showed the number of ecstasy tablets
intercepted by Customs had increased from 7969 four years ago to 265,447
last year.

"Customs should be congratulated for intercepting these drugs but the fear
is that this is only the tip of the iceberg," Mr Ryall said.

"The Government must do more to warn and inform New Zealanders about this
drug."

ACT MP Stephen Franks said the Government must drop its "soft-on-crime
mentality and start doing, instead of talking".

Police were under-resourced and under-staffed, and police methamphetamine
response teams would not start until next year.

He called on the Government to fast-track those teams and make police
funding an urgent priority.

"If the Government does not drop its apathetic soft-on-drugs approach, we
may soon see New Zealand top the list of world drug abuse."

New Zealand First MP Craig McNair called on the Government to wage an
all-out war on the manufacture, distribution and use of methamphetamines.

"The subtlety of the effects of these narcotics on the brain and in speeding
up the aging process are not understood by many users but the devastation in
our communities and the growth of criminal gangs certainly are," he said.

"It is time that we, as a nation, say enough is enough and take a leaf out
of Murupara's book and declare our communities drug free."

United Future leader Peter Dunne said the survey should serve as a wake-up
call to the Government on the need for a comprehensive drug strategy.

New Zealanders needed to stop seeing drugs as a recreational choice for the
middle class and realise they were not "harmless playthings".

"There is no upside, there is no acceptable face of drugs but there are some
in this country who would have us believe that there is," Mr Dunne said.

Massey University researcher Chris Wilkins told National Radio the New
Zealand statistics could be even worse as they were based on 2001 figures.

The numbers of clandestine labs found by police, recent drug seizures and
arrests suggested the use of drugs may have increased since then, he said.

But the Australian Government questioned the method of data collection for
the report as some countries used different means of collecting data, which
led to uncertainties in the comparison of nations.

"It's that comparison that we would question," a spokesman for Justice
Minister Chris Ellison said.

The spokesman said there was also a possibility that some nations were
under-reporting levels of drug abuse.

Police National Drug Intelligence Bureau chief Detective Inspector Gary
Knowles said there were no surprises for police in the report.

"It's what we've predicted for some time, and looking at global trends we've
probably caught up with the rest of the world... It's not a record I'm proud
of, and it shows New Zealand can no longer sit in isolation and believe we
won't have these drug problems."

Police had taken "a whole of governance" approach to methamphetamine and
ecstasy, Mr Knowles said.

That included the setting up of a methamphetamine action plan, toughened
legislation for dealing methamphetamine, strengthening of police search
powers, research on the effect of methamphetamine on crime, a boost in
funding to clandestine laboratory teams, and greater co-operation with the
pharmaceutical industry.

"We're trying to do everything we can to tackle the problem. Like a lot of
strategies they take time to come into being, and I think we need to start
looking at what our results will be in the next 5-10 years, rather than
currently."

However, action against methamphetamine was not the sole responsibility of
police, Mr Knowles said.

"It's not what we (police) are doing about it, but what is everyone doing
about it? I think there has to be an acceptance by everyone that this is a
community problem."