Modernising Australia's Drug Policy

Despite government inquiries, fierce debate and legislative endeavours,illicit drugs remain a major social and political problem in Australia.

The war against drugs has failed resoundingly here and in most other countries; it is clear that where there is a strong demand for drugs, sources of supply will inevitably emerge.

According to the authors of this provocative analysis, a modern Australian drug policy must build on the realisation that mood-altering drugs are primarily a health and social issue rather than a problem to be tackled by law enforcement agencies.

Support for this approach — from senior politicians, business people, police, doctors, lawyers, clergy and parents who have lost children from drugs — is growing in Australia and around the world. Indeed, Australia's policy makers are already starting to move away from relying almost entirely on law enforcement.

Written by two experts in the field, Modernising Australia's Drug Policy is about the options for Australia when the law enforcement approach is finally exhausted. The book includes a ten-point plan to reduce the death, disease, crime and corruption that has become an entrenched part of the drug economy, and concludes with a call for a new realism in Australian drug policy.

This book is a valuable addition to the debate of drugs in Australia. It will be of interest to law enforcement officers — from the courts and the police force; policy makers; health and medical staff; and anyone interested in current affairs.

Alex Wodak is director of the Alcohol and Drug Service at St Vincent's Hospital in Sydney. Tim Moore is drug policy project officer at Redfern Legal Centre.