Julian Simmonds (Ryan, Liberal National Party) Share this | Link to this | Hansard source

On behalf of the Joint Committee on Law Enforcement, I present the committee's report entitled Public communications campaigns targeting drug and substance abuse.

Report made a parliamentary paper in accordance with standing order 39(e).

by leave—Thank you very much to the stakeholders who participated in the inquiry and, of course, to the committee members and the secretariat for their very diligent efforts. Illicit drugs should be an issue of grave concern for all of us in this chamber and for all Australians. The Australian Criminal Intelligence Commission reported that Australia's stimulant consumption is the fourth-highest in the world. We're third-highest for the consumption of meth and MDMA.

Through this inquiry the committee has heard that the economic impact of illicit drug use is over $27 billion every year. That figure does not include the estimated $12 billion cost of harm to partners and children of those using methamphetamines. Drug use doesn't just affect and harm the users. It is a scourge on families and particularly on the most vulnerable in our society: our kids. The report of the committee recounts how approximately 50 to 80 per cent of all child abuse and neglect cases substantiated by child protection services in this nation involve some degree of substance abuse by the parents. For those who advocate pill testing, injection rooms and other policies to legalise recreational drug use, understand that you are not just enabling the users; you are destroying the opportunities and futures of innocent children who deserve better than the cycle of addiction.

While safe injecting rooms or pill testing may reduce health harms to the drug user, the committee also heard how this narrow approach exacerbates the broader harms to our society. Young Australians are dying from illicit drug use, not just through overdoses or dirty needles but also through risk-taking behaviours related to their drug use, such as drug driving. So many young lives have their trajectory to success harmed by drug use, cutting off their educational and employment opportunities, which limits them for the rest of their lives.

The committee report therefore advocates for an increased focus on the prevention approach to illicit drug use—where people are assisted through education to avoid illicit drugs from the beginning, instead of trying to cure them after the fact through addiction treatment. To target illicit drug use, our national law enforcement agencies have done a tremendous job ramping up their efforts.

The Australian Criminal Intelligence Commission also reported, as part of this inquiry, that, over the past decade, while the Australian population increased by around 13 per cent, the number of national illicit drug seizures increased by 77 per cent and the weight of illicit drugs seized nationally increased by 241 per cent. That not only shows the effort that our law enforcement agencies are going through and the success they are having; it also shows the growing scale of the problem.

But the committee's report demonstrates that enforcement is only one side of the coin. It must be coupled with public communication campaigns that represent an important part in lifting education levels on risk, supporting other policing elements and enabling better decision-making among the public. The committee and I are very concerned that there has been no National Drugs Campaign activity since early 2018. This is particularly relevant, with reports of increased problematic drug use during the COVID-19 pandemic. Clearly, the time is ripe for action.

The committee recommends that the government implement a new public communications campaign, via the National Drugs Campaign, that will support law enforcement agencies' efforts to reduce current and future illicit drug demand. Ideally, the campaign should consider the national and international best practice contained in this report, but also include a combination of shock and fear tactics that target the behavioural drug use rather than the individuals themselves.

The committee also recommends that the government present, as part of the new communications campaign, targeted messages to different cohorts, including a national schools element, as well as taking a long-term approach, of at least three to five years, to the campaign, to ensure that the messages from the campaign take root in our community over time. With a committed and collaborative approach to reducing drug demand, we can reduce the harms caused by illicit drugs to individuals and across the broader Australian society. I commend the committee's report to the House.

Debate adjourned.