POLICE CHIEF: GIVE HEROIN TO ADDICTS
‘Put the pushers out of business’
A TOP cop says the state should give heroin to addicts who need it to recover – but crack down on the dealers who supply them.
Durham Chief Constable Mike Barton, who has just been appointed head of the National Police Chiefs’ Council, has reignited the debate on how best to tackle the fight against drugs.
His new role has made him head of crime operations covering police intelligence across 43 forces.
Mr Barton is no stranger to controversy and backs “consumption rooms” where addicts can inject in safety. He said: A BABY boy rolls around on the carpet in what should be a treasured family snap. But the five-month-old has inherited rare “Werewolf Syndrome” and is covered with thick black hair. Devastated mum Manisha Sambhaji Raut, 22, from Pune, central India, also suffers from it – as do her sisters Savita, 30, Savitri, 19, and a niece. Manisha – who uses hair removal cream – said: “I always felt disgusted when I saw myself in the mirror and now wonder how my child will cope with the same trauma. “My sisters and I were teased and nicknamed ghost, bear and monkey. To know my son will also go through the pain and suffering I went through breaks my heart.
“We were locked away because people couldn’t cope with the way we looked. I only hope people will be kinder towards my son.”
The hair is caused by a one-in-abillion genetic condition known as hypertrichosis universalis.
Manisha and husband Vithal, 30, have not yet named their son. They are thrilled to be parents but admit Vithal’s mum is not happy.
Manisha said: “She moans that he is not good or a beautiful baby and says he is ugly and looks like a monkey. I feel angry and hurt.
“She has forced me to apply the same cream on my son but his skin is too sensitive. He cried in pain as his skin turned red.” “Momentum does appear to be gathering to treat addiction as a health issue. I’ve called for a controlled environment – not a free-for-all.
“And people who encourage others to take drugs by selling them are criminals. Their actions should be tackled and they should be put out of business.
“I know people find me controversial. I don’t set out to be. If you unpick what I say about drugs, it is not that controversial. More often than not I am quoting from the medical journal the Lancet.” But he is not advocating making heroin legal: “I am saying that if someone comes to us for help, and they are a heroin addict, then we offer them heroin rather than methadone because it is proven to be more effective.
“The Lancet has shown giving them heroin is quicker when they want to kick the habit. Who wouldn’t want that?”
But David Raynes, of the National Drugs Prevention Alliance, said heroin was prescribed until the end of the 1960s but much of it ended up on the black market. He added: “You are committing to a lifetime of helping them with addiction instead of getting them off it.” After 37 years, Mr Barton has two years left on his contract, when he will be 61. He plans a charity sky dive with the Red Arrows next month.