MEDIA RELEASE
NEW ZEALAND DRUG FOUNDATION

To: Chief Reporter
Date: 27 August 2007
For immediate release

Time to get smart on drugs and crime

A significant expansion of drug treatment services in prisons and greater investment in re-integration is critical if New Zealand wants to reduce re-offending rates, says the Drug Foundation in a policy statement released today.

The Drug Foundation’s policy, Reducing alcohol and other drug problems in New Zealand’s criminal justice system, sets out priorities for action based on extensive research into how other countries have successfully reduced offending though co-ordinated addiction treatment and reintegration programmes.

It urges a “whole of government” plan to address alcohol and drug problems across the wider criminal justice system, so that addicted offenders are identified early and given access to the same treatments available to those not in jail.

Provision of addiction treatment services to people in police cells, on remand and community sentences, diversion to compulsory treatment, expansion of methadone treatment, and the introduction of clean drug injecting equipment in prisons also form key planks of the policy, which is designed to reduce offending and also meet prisoners’ serious health needs.

The Drug Foundation is inviting politicians, decision makers and advocates to debate this issue with an eye to long-term solutions rather than political point-scoring, especially as the next election approaches.

Executive Director Ross Bell says debate has been dominated for the last decade by ‘tough on crime’ proponents and the resulting increase in prisoner numbers has made the problem worse.

“There is no doubt that alcohol and drugs play a significant role in many crimes, and locking up people with addictions may make us all feel safer in the short term. The reality is, however, that if prisoners don’t get treatment for their alcohol and drug problems, they come out and quickly re-offend which costs society a lot more in the long run.

“It’s time to get smart about this. It’s not about being soft or tough on crime. It’s about looking seriously at best practice and solid evidence to find real solutions.”

Mr Bell says there is ample evidence from the US, the UK, Finland and the Netherlands that the sorts of interventions suggested by the policy result in significant reductions in re-offending. Economic savings in reduced crime from some diversion programmes in the US were estimated to be as high as $7 for each dollar invested in prison addiction treatment. For some out-of-prison treatment programmes, savings were as high as $12. He says a start has been made here with prisoners completing residential treatment programmes being 13 percent less likely to be re-convicted, but there simply aren’t enough of these and other addiction services to meet the massive need.

“The problem is, we’re a little late to the party. We have one of the highest imprisonment rates in the developed world, but we’re only now realising that we don’t have adequate services in place to ensure the same people don’t keep coming back to prison.

“I applaud our Corrections Minister’s stated intention to make services available ‘to every prisoner who wants to make a change’, but wonder why it has taken eight years for government to start taking this problem seriously.

“We’re a small nation, and our systems are capable of making rapid changes. Even so, we need a long term strategy with significant resourcing to tackle a problem that will take more than one election cycle to solve.

“Let’s hope we can find a greater level of political and community agreement to begin tackling the problem of alcohol, drugs and prisons in a smart and effective way.”

ENDS

--

Policy Summary: Reducing alcohol and other drug problems in New Zealand’s criminal justice system.

A brief policy summary follows below. For more detail, please see the full copy of the policy, and supporting documentation accompanying this release.

- Alcohol and other drugs (AOD) contribute significantly to New Zealand crime

- Research shows addressing AOD problems reduces costs and harms

- Recent expansions to AOD treatment services, and plans for improved co-ordination of services are a good start.

- A co-ordinated AOD plan across the criminal justice system, which includes police, the courts and reintegration services, is urgently needed

- Alternatives to prison sentences should be considered for some offenders

- People on remand, probation and home detention need improved treatment access

- Treatment must be available to people on short sentences as well as to those on long sentences

- Methadone and needle exchange programmes will reduce harm for prisoners who need them

- Prisoners about to be released, and their families, should receive planning, support and access to well-managed aftercare to reduce re-offending

- Treatment and rehabilitation programmes should be solidly evaluated and the results made publicly available

- Services must be resourced to succeed and meet needs fully

- AOD interventions for Māori should be developed and delivered in partnership with Māori.

ENDS

See...
Criminal justice policy position (Full policy, PDF)
Criminal justice policy evidence review (PDF)

© Scoop Media