STUDENTS MAY BE TESTED FOR DRUGS

Nelson College is considering introducing drug testing, and school
principals in the region fear it is only a matter of time before the
drug P becomes a big problem.

College headmaster Salvi Gargiulo said his school's board of trustees
was to investigate the legalities of drug testing and report its
findings to a conference in Wellington next month.

"When we identify a student who seems to be dropping off the pace a
little or changing his work habits, I would like to be able to test
them," Mr Gargiulo said.

"It wouldn't be random, it would be targeted."

He said the idea was to create a deterrent for students who took
drugs.

"We know we have students all through the system dabbling with this
stuff. It's not just a matter of simply targeting cannabis; it's the
whole range of drugs. P sounds just so much more scary."

P is crystal methamphetamine, also known as pure, burn, crystal or
ice.

Motueka High School principal Rex Smith said he was not looking
forward to the inevitable problem of students using P.

"We haven't had any evidence of it here yet," Mr Smith said. "I know
from talking to some principals in the North Island that it is a
problem there and I imagine it is only a matter of time before it
starts to surface here."

But his school did not plan to introduce targeted drug testing, he
said. "Occasionally the board of trustees will require a student to
produce evidence that they have done something about their drug
problem. That is usually a drug test and going to counselling."

The board had dealt with two students on drug-related matters this
year, he said.

"It doesn't happen very often, most of the time it's just teenage
stupidity."

No students had been expelled for drugs during the year-and-a-half he
had been principal, he said.

Nelson College for Girls principal Alison McAlpine said her school had
used drug testing very occasionally for the past four years.

"We might use it as a condition of being allowed back to school after
being stood down for drugs," Mrs McAlpine said.

"We haven't used it for at least a year though."

However, she had hired a drugs dog a few weeks ago to come through the
school and sniff the students' bags.

"No one knew about it except for me. It is important for the girls to
be reminded of the reality of it."

Mr Gargiulo said there was a number of problems surrounding targeted
drug testing which the board would have to look at, including getting
parent and student permission to do it.

Detective Sergeant Mark Kaveney of Nelson police said P was not much
of a problem in the region just yet.

"We've only dealt with it sporadically and we've had no involvement
with it in schools," he said.

"Unfortunately the way methamphetamine is spreading throughout the
country I have no doubt that it will become more of a problem in the
Nelson region.

"But whatever the schools and principals are doing, good on
them."

However, undercover police say they are overwhelmed by the
availability of P in Whangarei.

Commenting on yesterday's release of national crime statistics that
showed a 27.8 drop in cannabis offences, Northland police said
methamphetamines were becoming an increasing problem in Northland.

Crime services manager Detective Inspector Mark Franklin said 16 "meth
labs" were found in Northland last year and eight had been found so
far this year.

Police had been told of violent domestic incidents in which P was a
factor.