Mr BELL - 1995-08-15
I remind the minister of his comments last Tuesday about the president of the Northern Territory branch of the AMA whom he described, when he was calling for reform of the Country Liberal Party's drug laws, as putting out `pretty outrageous stuff'. He described the president's comments on marijuana laws as `pretty irresponsible'. On Friday, he repeated that. On a similar program, he referred to me as a `champion of drug addicts'. Does the Minister for Health Services feel the same way about the Chief Minister's recent comments? Is he convinced now that the Chief Minister is also a champion of drug addicts?
ANSWER
Mr Speaker, I could not have written a better dorothy dixer myself!
Mr Bell interjecting.
Mr SPEAKER: Order!
Mr FINCH: I ask honourable members, and people listening to the radio broadcast, to go back to the terms of the question, particularly in relation to the heroin proposals put by Dr Chris Wake of the AMA, and the implied support. Not for one second did the member for MacDonnell say that he rejects what I interpret to be absolutely unacceptable suggestions that the Territory should follow the ACT's suggestion to supply heroin to heroin addicts. It is bad enough that he advocates the free, taxpayer-funded provision of methadone, an addictive drug demonstrated to have ...
Mr Bell: You would pack them off on a bus down the track.
Mr FINCH: I will tell you about the bus in a minute.
Mrs Padgham-Purich interjecting.
Mr SPEAKER: Order!
Mr Bailey interjecting.
Mr FINCH: You are really out of touch with the views of Territorians, I have to tell you.
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Members interjecting.
Mr SPEAKER: Order! There are far too many interjections. If they were sensible interjections, that would be fine.
Mr FINCH: Mr Speaker, I will tell you about the views of the real people in the Territory generally and in the suburbs of Darwin. In regard to the comment about the one-way bus ticket, they want me to expand the program. They have no time for interstate druggies who come here, infiltrating the local scene ...
Mr Bailey: Aren't there any Territorians?
Mr FINCH: I know the member for Wanguri's views on drug abuse. He should be a little more circumspect, because I can tell him that his views are out of sync with the thoughts of Territorians, who will not accept the concept of the taxpayer funding a more serious ...
Mr Bailey interjecting.
Mr SPEAKER: Order!
Mr FINCH: As a psychologist, you ought to know rather more about this.
Members interjecting.
Mr FINCH: You will have your chance to talk about what you think is the appropriate treatment for drug addicts. However, I tell you that I have no difficulty with the concept of sending them back to where they came ...
Mr Bailey: They live here. They are born here. They are Territorians.
Mr FINCH: Some are born here, and we deal with them. We have programs in place to get them off drugs - not to put them on drugs at the taxpayer's expense, not on a drug that has a 25% fatality rate ...
Mr Bailey: Look at all the research ...
Mr SPEAKER: Order!
Mr FINCH: Don't you read newspapers, don't you listen? There is a higher fatality rate from methadone, by 25%. It is far more addictive. I am told that in some cases it is 8 times more difficult for people to get off methadone than heroin.
Mr Bailey: That is why the ACT is suggesting heroin trials ...
Mr FINCH: In no state in Australia ...
Members interjecting.
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Mr Bailey interjecting.
Mr SPEAKER: Order!
Mr FINCH: Now they want free heroin. They will not get it from this government, I can tell you.
Let me talk about the real issue. The real issue is that Territorians will not wear drug addicts coming to the Territory and spoiling our environment. I am not at odds with any of my colleagues on our intention to continue to be tough on drug offences ...
Mr Bailey: You will not even answer the question.
Mr FINCH: I have answered the question. It is quite simple.
Mr Bailey: Do you support the Chief Minister's move in relation to marijuana? That was the question.
Mr FINCH: Members opposite jump in opportunistically with a misinterpretation of what is proposed in this broad-ranging discussion paper, which is about freeing up the courts and the time of the police, particularly in relation to drugs, enabling them to knock more heroin dealers out of the game. This is where the issue of methadone was raised. The operations of our police force have been so effective that they have cleaned the streets of heroin. Members opposite need to stand back and examine what they are proposing in relation to methadone, marijuana use, and now, heroin. Their support for the heroin program is shameful!
In conclusion, in relation to methadone, if members opposite study what is happening around Australia, there is not one methadone program that does not cause more harm than good. For a cost of $2000 a year, as proposed by Dr Wake, what sort of a program would that be, with what lack of controls, and what harm would that do? I can tell members. It would do enormous harm.
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ANSWER
Mr Speaker, I could not have written a better dorothy dixer myself!
Mr Bell interjecting.
Mr SPEAKER: Order!
Mr FINCH: I ask honourable members, and people listening to the radio broadcast, to go back to the terms of the question, particularly in relation to the heroin proposals put by Dr Chris Wake of the AMA, and the implied support. Not for one second did the member for MacDonnell say that he rejects what I interpret to be absolutely unacceptable suggestions that the Territory should follow the ACT's suggestion to supply heroin to heroin addicts. It is bad enough that he advocates the free, taxpayer-funded provision of methadone, an addictive drug demonstrated to have ...
Mr Bell: You would pack them off on a bus down the track.
Mr FINCH: I will tell you about the bus in a minute.
Mrs Padgham-Purich interjecting.
Mr SPEAKER: Order!
Mr Bailey interjecting.
Mr FINCH: You are really out of touch with the views of Territorians, I have to tell you.
Page 693
Members interjecting.
Mr SPEAKER: Order! There are far too many interjections. If they were sensible interjections, that would be fine.
Mr FINCH: Mr Speaker, I will tell you about the views of the real people in the Territory generally and in the suburbs of Darwin. In regard to the comment about the one-way bus ticket, they want me to expand the program. They have no time for interstate druggies who come here, infiltrating the local scene ...
Mr Bailey: Aren't there any Territorians?
Mr FINCH: I know the member for Wanguri's views on drug abuse. He should be a little more circumspect, because I can tell him that his views are out of sync with the thoughts of Territorians, who will not accept the concept of the taxpayer funding a more serious ...
Mr Bailey interjecting.
Mr SPEAKER: Order!
Mr FINCH: As a psychologist, you ought to know rather more about this.
Members interjecting.
Mr FINCH: You will have your chance to talk about what you think is the appropriate treatment for drug addicts. However, I tell you that I have no difficulty with the concept of sending them back to where they came ...
Mr Bailey: They live here. They are born here. They are Territorians.
Mr FINCH: Some are born here, and we deal with them. We have programs in place to get them off drugs - not to put them on drugs at the taxpayer's expense, not on a drug that has a 25% fatality rate ...
Mr Bailey: Look at all the research ...
Mr SPEAKER: Order!
Mr FINCH: Don't you read newspapers, don't you listen? There is a higher fatality rate from methadone, by 25%. It is far more addictive. I am told that in some cases it is 8 times more difficult for people to get off methadone than heroin.
Mr Bailey: That is why the ACT is suggesting heroin trials ...
Mr FINCH: In no state in Australia ...
Members interjecting.
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Mr Bailey interjecting.
Mr SPEAKER: Order!
Mr FINCH: Now they want free heroin. They will not get it from this government, I can tell you.
Let me talk about the real issue. The real issue is that Territorians will not wear drug addicts coming to the Territory and spoiling our environment. I am not at odds with any of my colleagues on our intention to continue to be tough on drug offences ...
Mr Bailey: You will not even answer the question.
Mr FINCH: I have answered the question. It is quite simple.
Mr Bailey: Do you support the Chief Minister's move in relation to marijuana? That was the question.
Mr FINCH: Members opposite jump in opportunistically with a misinterpretation of what is proposed in this broad-ranging discussion paper, which is about freeing up the courts and the time of the police, particularly in relation to drugs, enabling them to knock more heroin dealers out of the game. This is where the issue of methadone was raised. The operations of our police force have been so effective that they have cleaned the streets of heroin. Members opposite need to stand back and examine what they are proposing in relation to methadone, marijuana use, and now, heroin. Their support for the heroin program is shameful!
In conclusion, in relation to methadone, if members opposite study what is happening around Australia, there is not one methadone program that does not cause more harm than good. For a cost of $2000 a year, as proposed by Dr Wake, what sort of a program would that be, with what lack of controls, and what harm would that do? I can tell members. It would do enormous harm.
Page 695
Last updated: 09 Aug 2016