Safe rooms where drug addicts can inject themselves under the supervision of nurses should be opened across Brighton and Hove, a report will recommend today (April 18).
The proposal is just one of a series being presented by the Independent Drugs Commission for the city following a year-long research project.
The group was set up last year to tackle the city’s drug problem.
The panel, which is made up of drug experts, academics, police chiefs, family members of addicts and crime author Peter James, set about taking a fresh look at the city’s problem.
This morning the final recommendations will be revealed at the Brighthelm Centre in North Road.
MP Caroline Lucas, who called for the group to be created, said: “A lot of good work has been done to tackle the problem in the city, but this was all about a fresh approach.
“I think we could be on the cusp of a change in the way people think about tackling drugs.”
Medical supervision
The headline recommendation is a call for local authorities to look at introducing “consumption rooms” for junkies.
The rooms, which are already used in countries such as Canada and Australia, would see drug addicts able to take substances under the supervision of nurses.
Another of the key recommendations is to improve the education of health workers and police officers about individuals who suffer from both mental health and addiction issues.
Better analysis of coroner and social service reports is also needed to discover the circumstances which lead to previous drug-related deaths, the report states.
Information sharing
There should also be greater sharing of information between Sussex Police and the Community Safety Partnership to track local drug markets and predict trends.
Dr Lucas said: “Some of the recommendations will be controversial but we want decisions to be made on evidence, not how they play out in the tabloids.”
The report will be presented to the Safe in the City Partnership Board on April 30.
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