John MacDonald: I'm meh about the meth plan. But at least it's something.

At least they’re doing something. But I don’t rate the chances of it working.

That’s how I’m feeling about the Government’s declaration of war on methamphetamine, with this new plan that will see spy agencies working with customs and the defence force to target ships carrying drugs in the Pacific.

It's also going to work with ports and the shipping industry.

The feature of the plan that I like most is this $30 million increase in funding for addiction services. Because, as the Drug Foundation is saying, we can’t arrest our way out of the meth problem.

Sarah Helm is executive director and she says help for people caught up in meth addiction has been significantly under-funded for many years.

She says: “It’s clear to everyone that we can’t arrest our way out of this issue. Spending on treatment and harm reduction is also a better investment of taxpayer money than criminalising people, because it results in savings downstream in health, justice and social costs.”

And we know about the cost - $19.4 million a week. That’s what the National Drug Intelligence Bureau estimates is the value of the harm caused by methamphetamine use every week in New Zealand.

That’s the cost of things like people ending up in hospital, dying - all the social harm. Just under $20 million a week.

The Government’s plan also includes a four-year advertising campaign to educate people about the dangers of meth use.

Which I’m not convinced will be effective. Because everyone knows how bad meth is already - and still we’re using more of it than we ever have.

It's been about 25 years since methamphetamine - as we know it - really took off in New Zealand. And it’s turned out to be a great market for the suppliers.

Some numbers I’ve seen the police refer to is how someone can bring-in 600 kilos of the stuff for a couple of million dollars, sell it and make a profit of around $120 million.

So who is going to turn their back on that kind of opportunity?

But, even though I don’t see it changing things greatly, good on the Government for trying something.

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Episode Transcript

Speaker 1 (00:06):
You're listening to the Canterbury Mornings podcast with John McDonald
from News Talks AB.

Speaker 2 (00:12):
At least they're doing something. I'm just trying to work out.
Then how do I describe it to you? This is
my position on the government's meth crackdown. This is how
I describe it. At Least they're doing something, but I
don't rate the chances of it working. That's how I'm
feeling about the government's declaration of war on methamphetamine. With

(00:33):
this new plan that will see spy agencies working with
customs and the Defense Force to target ships carrying drugs
in the Pacific. It's also going to work with ports
in the shipping industry. The feature of the plan, if
you said, well, what do you like about it? Well,
the feature of the plan that I like most is
this thirty million dollar increase in funding for addiction services, because,

(00:57):
as the Drug Foundation is saying this morning, we can't
arrest our way out of the meth problem. Now. Sarah
Helm is executive rector, and she says help for people
caught up in meth addiction has been significantly underfunded for
many years. And she says, quote, it's clear to everyone
that we can't arrest our way out of this issue.

(01:21):
She says spending on treatment and harm reduction is also
a better investment of taxpayer money than criminalizing people because
it results in savings downstream and health justice and social costs.
And we know about the cost nineteen point four million
dollars a week. That's what the National Drug Intelligence Bureau

(01:45):
estimates as the value of the harm caused by methamphetamine
every week in New Zealand. That's the cost of well,
the cost of people ending up in hospital, the cost
of people dying, or all of the social harm just
under twenty million dollars a week, so the government says.
In Justice Minister Paul Goldsmith says the government's new plan

(02:06):
has three main objectives.

Speaker 3 (02:09):
To stop the stuff coming in at the first place,
which is working up in the Pacific and beyond, and
that our borders to stop it coming in. Secondly, it's
about the distribution within New Zealand, which is around organized
crime and gangs. And thirdly it's about reducing the demand
for it and dealing with the demand. Because you can
spend your whole life focus on the first two, but
if you don't deal with the demand, you're not going

(02:29):
to get very far. That's why it's a comprehensive plan
looking at all of those different angles.

Speaker 2 (02:33):
There's also going to be a four year advertising campaign
to educate us about the dangers of meth, which Paul
Goldsmith admits won't be a silver bullet on its own.

Speaker 3 (02:43):
But it may stop some people taking the risk, and
no single thing on its own is going to solve
the problem. Of course, a campaign's not going to deal
with a hard and sort of myth at it, but
there may be a young person who's thinking about it
who if they get a clear message this is not
something you could use moderately. It's not something just to
have a deal of a devil with. It's something to

(03:04):
avoid at all costs because some people just one SHOT's
enough to lead to a decade's long spiral of chaos
and destruction. And that's what we want to send a
clear message about.

Speaker 2 (03:12):
Now. Look, I'm not really convinced about the advertising campaign,
but because everyone knows how bad method is already a
we all know, but we're still using more of it
than we ever have. When I say we, I'm talking collectively,
and we know that we're using more of it than
we ever have from the wastewater testing and Paul Goldsmith
said this morning that the wastewater testing is going to

(03:33):
be how the government will work out whether this new
plan is effective or not. I thought, I thought Jamie Bamford,
the Customs Department's Deputy Chief Executive of Operations, I thought
he explained very well the challenge authorities face when he
spoke to Mike this morning in relation to the ability
of the meth traders to outwit authorities.

Speaker 4 (03:56):
They move at the pace of technology. We kind of
move at the pace of the law. That's why we
have some sort of legislation hopefully about to hit the house.
But I think this will give ask the ability to
breach some gaps and as we talk about the Pacific,
actually be a bit more proactive, have more presence out
there on that vast ocean. That just makes it again
New Zealand harder to reach.

Speaker 2 (04:16):
Which is all very well, but you know what the
guy from Customs there, what he isn't saying is that
the creeps bringing this stuff into the country aren't small fry.
You know, they are part of sophisticated operations with international
connections who have done a very good job. If you
can call it that they've done a very good job
of winning the war on drugs, because, as we've seen

(04:40):
over the years, any so called war on drugs is
like a game of whack a mole, you know, the
thing with the head popping up here and you knock
it down, there's another one poking up. You know. You
shut down one operation here, another one pops up over there,
and good on the government for trying something. But I mean,
as a country and successive governments, we've been very slow

(05:02):
to do much about meth It's been around for about
twenty five years, about twenty five years since methamphetamine as
we know it really took off in New Zealand, and
it's turned out to be a brilliant market for the suppliers.
I mean, some numbers I've seen referred to by the
police recently talks about how someone can bring in six
hundred kilows of myth to New Zealand for a couple

(05:25):
of million bucks, sell it and make a profit of
around one hundred and twenty million as according to Detective
Superintendent Greg Williams, who says, quote the profits are immense
and let's face it, who's going to turn their back
on a market like that who is no one, which
is why I say, you know, at least the government's

(05:47):
doing something, but I don't like the chances of it working.

Speaker 1 (05:52):
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