RELATED: We need to act now
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HEROIN didn’t make any inroads.
But crystal meth has had no such problems in the North East.
The parliamentary committee found ice was as easy to get in the country as it was in the city.
Yet the member for Murray Valley Tim McCurdy said — based on committee hearings across Victoria — he did not believe ice use was an epidemic yet.
He said many people in the region felt it was a major problem because it was so easy to buy.
“I’ve got people saying to me ‘Tim, what’s it all about, how do they smoke it, what do they do, what are the signs to look for?’,” he said.
“Clearly you’ve got families throughout the community who say they’ve never had drug issues in their family.
“And then, all of a sudden, they’ve got one of their children on ice and they can’t shake it.”
The report found that methamphetamine use had dropped since 2001, but that crystal methamphetamine’s popularity had skyrocketed — doubling between 2010 and 2013.
“When you look at those doubling figures, and when you look at those ambulance figures, and the hospital presentation figures on a percentage basis, it really does look alarming,” Mr McCurdy said.
“But the reality is they are nothing like the alcohol problems in our community — or our domestic violence problems.”
The committee’s major recommendation was a ministerial council, led by the Premier, should be established to tackle the methamphetamine issue.
The council would develop a statewide plan that smaller communities could adopt.
“It’s not going to be driven by the top down,” Mr McCurdy said.
“It will be from the community saying we want to get on top of this because it’s causing a whole lot of harm and we want to drive it, so give us the tools to do this.”