Page 5453 - Week 14 - Thursday, 30 November 2017

Next page . . . . Previous page . . . . Speeches . . . . Contents . . . . Debates(HTML) . . . . PDF . . . . Video

(4) reaffirms the ACT Government’s commitment to:

(a) support pill testing as an evidence-based strategy to minimise drug-related harm and keep young people safe;

(b) explore further opportunities to trial pill testing in the ACT; and

I am pleased to bring this motion to the Assembly today to reaffirm our commitment to pill testing as part of an evidence-based harm minimisation approach to drug policy. The Greens have long advocated for a trial of pill testing here in the territory to keep our young people safe and to prevent them from dying from adulterated party drugs.

The reality is that most drug takers are unaware of the origin and chemical make-up of what they put into their body. For example, the MDMA content in an ecstasy tablet can vary widely and new synthetic drugs are constantly appearing on the market. There is also no control over how pills are manufactured or what goes into them. In fact, there is evidence to suggest that most pills and capsules marketed as MDMA often contain other chemicals and may not contain MDMA at all.

The concern is that some of these chemicals, such as PMA and PCP, are highly toxic and can cause dangerous side effects when ingested. While this is true for pills all over the world, with regard to ecstasy in particular, research shows that Australians are some of the highest consumers of ecstasy in the world and that Australian ecstasy has the highest rate of unknown ingredients.

Of course, there is no way of telling what is in a pill or tablet just by looking at it. Therefore, the consumption of these pills is a gamble that can have tragic consequences. Ecstasy is the second most commonly used illicit drug in Australia after cannabis, with figures putting the proportion of people who have ever used the drug at almost 11 per cent. Clearly the old law and order approach of telling people that drugs are bad and that they should just say no is not working. It does not stop people from taking drugs and it does not keep them safe when they do.

Australian drug policy rests on three pillars: supply reduction, demand reduction and harm reduction. At present, policy in the ACT and across the country focuses disproportionately on the second pillar, seeking to reduce demand through deterrence. As the motion outlines, while all three pillars are meant to have equal importance, the breakdown of spending at a national level shows that we continue to invest in a failed law and order approach, while harm reduction initiatives receive a minimal percentage of funding. If we continue to invest in approaches that do not work, we will continue to see the same outcomes.

We saw six deaths at music festivals in 2015 as a result of impure or toxic party drugs, clearly demonstrating that we need a new approach based on evidence and with harm reduction as the primary goal. The principle of harm reduction mandates that policies

Next page . . . . Previous page . . . . Speeches . . . . Contents . . . . Debates(HTML) . . . . PDF . . . . Video