SUPPORT FOR DRUG ADDICTS 'TOO BADLY RUN TO HELP'

Thousands of drug addicts are trapped in a life of crime, ill health and
dependency because the treatment services that could rescue them are badly
organised, according to a report yesterday from the audit commission.

The government's spending watchdog finds that half the GPs in England and
Wales are reluctant to prescribe substitute drugs to help addicts kick the
habit, and two-thirds say they lack both the expertise to support drug
misusers and easy access to specialist advice.

The commission finds drug treatment services can help users of hard drugs,
but that long waiting lists are driving them away. The number of new users
of class A drugs - including cocaine and heroin - rose from just under
10,000 in 1987 to more than 40,000 in 1996, according to doctors' data sent
to the Home Office.

Drug misusers spent about UKP 1bn a year on drugs, raising about half of
this via crime. Policing drug misuse and supporting drug misusers costs
taxpayers at least UKP 3.5bn a year.

Ministers have promised an extra UKP 167m for drug treatment services over
the next three years. But Andrew Foster, the commission's controller, said:
"The pattern of services means too many drug misusers struggle to get
help... many end up trapped in a cycle of dependency and drug related
crime."