Target the vile dealers

THE Spice epidemic has torn through the prison system and strewn our towns with zombified victims – now it is casting a long dark shadow over the very young.

When children as young as 11 are being sucked in, then eradicating this vile synthetic drug and its misery industry must move from being an urgent concern to a very grave one.

Dealers who show no shame in using vulnerable boys and girls as mules to do their dirty work must be shown no mercy.

At the same time, the authorities must have the resources to tackle the problems beneath Spice use, inside prisons and outside.

Spice addicts need help to free themselves from the poison and to find a meaning and a purpose in their lives beyond it.

Homelessness, unemployment and mental health issues are never far away, as well as plain old boredom and stupidity.

Community workers complain treatment programmes are run on a shoestring, and this short-sighted under-funding must stop. Treating users just as criminals is wrong. Treating the dealers as anything else is not an option. Those kids should be playing with friends, listening to music or doing their homework instead of running errands for criminals.

Schools, social services and the police working together can put the Mr Bigs where they belong: behind bars.