Melissa Price (Durack, Liberal Party) Share this | Link to this | Hansard source

I am pleased to discuss the ice summit I will be hosting in Geraldton tomorrow at POSH on Marine Terrace. Stakeholders in the community—such as police, health officials and rehabilitation service providers—as well as Assistant Minister for Health, Fiona Nash, will be in attendance.

According to the latest report, amphetamine type substances use, such as ice use, is more prevalent in regional areas of Australia such as Durack. Use is especially high among young men, with 34 per cent of users being males aged 14 to 29. The report found a rise of ice use and availability in the bush. For me, this is very worrying.

Following the crime forum I held in Geraldton last year, I want to listen to the local stakeholders and broader community and to let the community share their concerns about ice. I encourage everyone to attend, especially people who have been personally impacted on by ice. I will be submitting the feedback from the summit to the National Ice Taskforce to address the issue of reducing methamphetamine use in not just Geraldton but Durack more broadly.

Addressing this scourge is a priority of mine and of the Abbott government. I am committed to working hard to see ice and other drug use decrease in Durack. This summit will play a vital role in shaping the report given to the Prime Minister, with a national ice action strategy to be developed with the states by the end of the year.