Image: AAP Image/Bianca De Marchi
by ASPEN ABNER
NSW Premier Chris Minns last week announced a four-day Drug Summit to take place in December, comprising two days of regional forums in October 2024 and two days of forums in Sydney.
The announcement of the 2024 Drug Summit fulfils one of Labor’s election promises in a move that has been widely welcomed.
Lydia Shelly, President of the NSW Council for Civil Liberties (NSWCCL), commended the Premier for listening to the community and announcing the Drug Summit.
“This Summit is crucial for changing the demonisation of drug use and users and addressing the over-policing of minority populations. The success of reform depends on changing the way we talk about drugs and those who use them,” she said.
“Pill testing provides individuals with critical information about the substances they intend to consume, enabling them to make informed and safer choices. Pill testing saves lives and the Summit is an ideal environment to have the conversation.”
The drug summit will see a gathering of experts, policymakers, healthcare professionals, law enforcement and community leaders to discuss issues related to drug use, abuse, and addiction. Problems such as social, economic, housing, and education policy will also be discussed alongside these issues to develop drug-related comprehensive strategies.
The Summit will open the floor to have a conversation about cannabis law reform, drug decriminalisation and pill testing, encompassing a wide range of perspectives.
The NSW Council for Civil Liberties says they look forward to participating in this pivotal event, hoping to achieve meaningful reform and improved outcomes for the community.
The last NSW Drug Summit was held in 1999 in response to the record number of opioid-related deaths in the state.
One of the outcomes of this prior Drug Summit was Sydney’s Medically Supervised Injecting Centre (MSIC), the first supervised drug consumption facility in Australia which has been operating since 2001.
Calls to implement drug checking ahead of summit
However, the premier has reportedly ruled out drug checking ahead of the summit.
Cate Faehrmann, NSW Greens MP, called on the government to implement pill testing before the beginning of the summit.
“[The] announcement comes after a spate of overdoses in NSW and Victoria after people unknowingly consumed drugs cut with dangerous synthetic opioids like fentanyl and nitazenes,” she said.
“I urge the Minns government to allow pill testing to be trialed in this state too before the drug summit.”
Minns previously said there was no safe level of drug consumption, and that he would have already implemented pill testing if it was the solution.
Speaking on the Drug Summit, the premier said, “We know that drug use impacts individuals, families and communities in many different ways. The drug summit will bring people together to find new ways forward to tackle this incredibly complex and difficult problem.”
Health Minister Ryan Park added, “The drug summit will provide a range of viewpoints from those who interact with illicit drug use and addiction, from both health as well as non-health contexts.”
“This is an important conversation for us to have and it will be the first of its kind in a quarter-century. A lot of work has gone into this so far, and more work will go into this in partnership with the community to ensure we get this right,” Park continued.
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