Diversion scheme failures show summit response is needed
An election promise styled after Bob Carr's 1999 summit, last year's Drug Summit heard evidence from drug researchers, services, users and their families, as well as international perspectives on harm minimisation.
Its co-chairs made 56 recommendations, including reforms to the state's drug court diversion scheme which, as Max Maddison reports in today's Sun-Herald, data suggests is continuing to be applied inconsistently by local police commands across the state.
After a coalition of social services organisations called for the state government to urgently implement the summit's recommendations in late June, Health Minister Ryan Park said there would be a response by the end of the year. In today's story, Police Minister Yasmin Catley is promising one 'in the coming weeks'.
But the failure of the state's diversion scheme demonstrates the difficulty with implementing changes to drug policy, which depends on various agencies working together to tackle a societal ill that does not fit solely within any of their remits.
Take the state's pill testing trial, which began at music festivals last summer following an urgent recommendation from the Drug Summit's co-chairs ahead of their final report.
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Even with the trial under way, Minns has been reluctant to stop the use of drug detection dogs at trial sites, despite this being specifically recommended by Tebbutt and Brogden, after receiving rafts of expert evidence.
'I'm not prepared to say in relation to this big music festival … if you're going to ingest drugs, the police aren't going to be there. I think that would send the wrong message,' the premier said in response to questions about the presence of sniffer dogs at Sydney Olympic Park's Midnight Mafia festival in April, which also hosted a pill testing tent.
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Sydney Morning Herald
a day ago
- Sydney Morning Herald
Diversion scheme failures show summit response is needed
It has been four months since the co-chairs of the Minns government's Drug Summit, former deputy premier Carmel Tebbutt and former opposition leader John Brogden, handed down their final report. An election promise styled after Bob Carr's 1999 summit, last year's Drug Summit heard evidence from drug researchers, services, users and their families, as well as international perspectives on harm minimisation. Its co-chairs made 56 recommendations, including reforms to the state's drug court diversion scheme which, as Max Maddison reports in today's Sun-Herald, data suggests is continuing to be applied inconsistently by local police commands across the state. After a coalition of social services organisations called for the state government to urgently implement the summit's recommendations in late June, Health Minister Ryan Park said there would be a response by the end of the year. In today's story, Police Minister Yasmin Catley is promising one 'in the coming weeks'. But the failure of the state's diversion scheme demonstrates the difficulty with implementing changes to drug policy, which depends on various agencies working together to tackle a societal ill that does not fit solely within any of their remits. Take the state's pill testing trial, which began at music festivals last summer following an urgent recommendation from the Drug Summit's co-chairs ahead of their final report. Loading Even with the trial under way, Minns has been reluctant to stop the use of drug detection dogs at trial sites, despite this being specifically recommended by Tebbutt and Brogden, after receiving rafts of expert evidence. 'I'm not prepared to say in relation to this big music festival … if you're going to ingest drugs, the police aren't going to be there. I think that would send the wrong message,' the premier said in response to questions about the presence of sniffer dogs at Sydney Olympic Park's Midnight Mafia festival in April, which also hosted a pill testing tent.
Sydney Morning Herald
a day ago
- Sydney Morning Herald
Eastern suburbs lotto: Drug diversion scheme differs wildly across postcodes
Uptake even fluctuated dramatically between neighbouring PACs. For example, officers stationed in the Eastern Suburbs PAC, covering areas north and west of Bronte, diverted people onto the scheme in less than 6 per cent of instances, compared with 26 per cent at Eastern Beaches, which covers Clovelly through to Little Bay. Low-level drug users were more likely to receive a fine in areas known for hosting music festivals: Sydney Olympic Park and Centennial Park, both of which host a number of festivals every year, fall within the remit of Auburn, which had the highest diversion rate in NSW of 32 per cent, and Eastern Beaches PAC, respectively. The type of drug users were caught with also proved hugely influential in whether they were issued a fine. About 23 per cent of people caught with cocaine and 29 per cent of those caught with MDMA avoided court, compared with 3 per cent with meth and 2 per cent with heroin. While the proportion of cannabis users diverted through the scheme appeared to be low, they are predominantly dealt with under the state's Cannabis Cautioning Scheme, in operation since 2000. About 37 per cent of users receive a caution under that scheme, according to 2023 Bureau of Crime and Statistics & Research analysis, although that figure has fallen over the past 20 years. Loading More than 11,000 officers have completed training on the court diversion scheme, according to police data provided to parliament. Acknowledging during budget estimates in March that the EDDI was 'not achieving what we want it to achieve', Police Minister Yasmin Catley foreshadowed changes to the scheme but declined to provide details. 'As police have described to me, we need to make some changes,' she said. 'Police have never opposed this. This is something that we're happy to work together on. From the Drug Summit, we'll see some changes, but police are certainly supportive of some changes to be made to EDDI.' It is four months since the co-chairs of the Drug Summit handed the government their final report. The state government is yet to respond to its 56 recommendations, although Health Minister Ryan Park said in late June it would do so this year 'as requested by the co-chairs'. The report recommended broadening the EDDI's eligibility criteria, including addressing restrictions on possession of multiple drugs, criminal history and threshold quantities. It also recommended limiting police discretion and 'ensuring a clear monitoring and evaluation framework'. Catley told the Herald the scheme was being considered alongside the Drug Summit recommendations, which the government will respond to 'in the coming weeks'. 'Make no mistake – drugs are illegal and cause widespread harm in our community,' she said, describing the diversion as giving police 'another way to address low-level drug possession'. 'We want this scheme to work and see more people complete health interventions,' she said. Faehrmann said the drug diversion laws had been an 'abject failure', claiming the number of people still being charged demonstrated the discretion provided to police was the scheme's fundamental problem. 'It's incredibly frustrating that thousands of people are still being sent to court for minor drug possession each year while recommendations for reform from the Drug Summit have been sitting on the premier's desk for months,' she said.
The Age
a day ago
- The Age
Eastern suburbs lotto: Drug diversion scheme differs wildly across postcodes
Uptake even fluctuated dramatically between neighbouring PACs. For example, officers stationed in the Eastern Suburbs PAC, covering areas north and west of Bronte, diverted people onto the scheme in less than 6 per cent of instances, compared with 26 per cent at Eastern Beaches, which covers Clovelly through to Little Bay. Low-level drug users were more likely to receive a fine in areas known for hosting music festivals: Sydney Olympic Park and Centennial Park, both of which host a number of festivals every year, fall within the remit of Auburn, which had the highest diversion rate in NSW of 32 per cent, and Eastern Beaches PAC, respectively. The type of drug users were caught with also proved hugely influential in whether they were issued a fine. About 23 per cent of people caught with cocaine and 29 per cent of those caught with MDMA avoided court, compared with 3 per cent with meth and 2 per cent with heroin. While the proportion of cannabis users diverted through the scheme appeared to be low, they are predominantly dealt with under the state's Cannabis Cautioning Scheme, in operation since 2000. About 37 per cent of users receive a caution under that scheme, according to 2023 Bureau of Crime and Statistics & Research analysis, although that figure has fallen over the past 20 years. Loading More than 11,000 officers have completed training on the court diversion scheme, according to police data provided to parliament. Acknowledging during budget estimates in March that the EDDI was 'not achieving what we want it to achieve', Police Minister Yasmin Catley foreshadowed changes to the scheme but declined to provide details. 'As police have described to me, we need to make some changes,' she said. 'Police have never opposed this. This is something that we're happy to work together on. From the Drug Summit, we'll see some changes, but police are certainly supportive of some changes to be made to EDDI.' It is four months since the co-chairs of the Drug Summit handed the government their final report. The state government is yet to respond to its 56 recommendations, although Health Minister Ryan Park said in late June it would do so this year 'as requested by the co-chairs'. The report recommended broadening the EDDI's eligibility criteria, including addressing restrictions on possession of multiple drugs, criminal history and threshold quantities. It also recommended limiting police discretion and 'ensuring a clear monitoring and evaluation framework'. Catley told the Herald the scheme was being considered alongside the Drug Summit recommendations, which the government will respond to 'in the coming weeks'. 'Make no mistake – drugs are illegal and cause widespread harm in our community,' she said, describing the diversion as giving police 'another way to address low-level drug possession'. 'We want this scheme to work and see more people complete health interventions,' she said. Faehrmann said the drug diversion laws had been an 'abject failure', claiming the number of people still being charged demonstrated the discretion provided to police was the scheme's fundamental problem. 'It's incredibly frustrating that thousands of people are still being sent to court for minor drug possession each year while recommendations for reform from the Drug Summit have been sitting on the premier's desk for months,' she said.
