Many equate ice addiction with lower socioeconomic status, a dysfunctional family life and a lack of financial security – but as Independent MP Jacqui Lambie revealed recently, ice addiction can have a devastating impact on even the most privileged people.
The Tasmanian senator opened up about her 21-year-old son’s addiction on ABC’s 7.30 program, saying that things had quickly spiralled out of control after her son began ‘dabbling’ in the drug a couple of years ago.
She was forced to kick her son out of the family home two-and-a-half months ago after he began acting erratically and some of Ms. Lambie’s personal belongings went missing.
Other Families Crippled by Ice Addiction
Proving that no family is immune from the impact of ice addiction, Northern Territory’s Police Minister Peter Chandler also recently spoke out about his son’s battle with the drug.
The Chandler family made headlines over the weekend after it was revealed that Mr Chandler’s 21-year-old son Brandon lent his father’s car to a friend, who was later stopped by police and found with 1.5 grams of methamphetamine in his possession.
The friend left his unregistered car with Brandon, who drove it to the police station the next morning to report his father’s car as missing. Brandon was charged with driving an unregistered vehicle.
His father, Peter spoke to the media later that day, saying that the situation was ‘embarrassing,’ and that he had previously been forced to kick his son out of home, along with his girlfriend and their child, because of the impact their addiction was having on the rest of the family.
He said that his ‘first-hand experience’ with ice addiction gave him a better understanding of how the drug affected individuals and the wider community; and that this in turn has assisted him to understand ‘what will work and what won’t work when it comes to developing policies and moving forward with government programs.’
Rather than focusing on punitive measures for drug users, the Police Minister has suggested that educating children from an early age about the dangers of ice is the best way forward.
Senate Debates New Drug Legislation
Ms Lambie’s comments come at the same time that the Social Services Legislation Amendment Bill 2015 is being debated by the Senate.
If passed, the Bill would give the government the right to strip welfare recipients of payments where they have been charged with a serious offence and are undergoing psychiatric confinement as a result of their offending.
The Explanatory Memorandum to the Bill suggests that these people do not require social security payments because ‘the relevant state or territory government is responsible for taking care of their needs, including funding their treatment and rehabilitation.’
The Memorandum also notes that if the Bill is passed, a total of $29.5 million will be saved per year.
But Ms Lambie says that based on her personal experience, taking a hardline approach to drugs is the wrong way to go.
Rather, she believes drug addicted people who find themselves charged with criminal offences and detained in psychiatric confinement should fall under a special category because they are not in control of their actions.
Ms Lambie is behind a private members’ Bill which would allow parents to commit their kids to involuntary detoxification.
According to the Senator, this would enable parents to ‘take control of the child’s situation and get the kids the help they need.’
She has also suggested that families battling drug addiction would benefit from greater funding towards rehabilitation centres and services, with many facilities around the nation currently facing shortages in beds, staff and other resources.
If implemented, these measures would form part of a nationwide plan to target ice addiction, with police around the country encouraging members of the public to ‘Dob in a Drug Dealer’ and Prime Minister Tony Abbott announcing a national ice taskforce to ‘co-ordinate and assess local, state and federal government efforts to address the drug, and identify ways to improve education, health and law enforcement.’
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