Drug-related crime set to escalate

#1054 for broadcast on 2CH Sydney, 29 March 2015

The first public report by the Australian Crime Commission on Australia’s ice epidemic has found that ice, or crystal methylamphetamine, posed the highest risk to the Australian community of all illicit drugs, and called for a collective response from governments, law enforcement agencies, community groups and industry.

The report said more than 60 per cent of Australia’s highest risk criminal targets were involved in the ice market, and organised crime was adept at exploiting regulatory weaknesses, and responding to fluctuations in the availability of precursor chemicals.

Federal justice minister Michael Keenan said “addiction to this mind-eating, personality-distorting, life-ending drug” was undermining the social fabric, and transnational organised criminal syndicates were hugely profiting from its misery.

It is my considered view that “war on drugs” may never be won, but we must never ignore the needs of addicts, their families, and the first responders to emergency situations involving ice users, all of whom deserve our support.

I’m Rod Benson for the NSW Council of Churches.