Battling drugs or making money?

[0utrider]

http://www.news.com.au/dailytelegrap...006009,00.html

THE State Government is trumpeting its two new drug-testing Winnebagos as a breakthrough in its battle against drug-driving.
The move was last night condemned as a revenue-raising exercise rather than a genuine attempt to clean up drug use on Sydney's roads.
Drug educators say the new vans will be used to catch drug-taking drivers rather than stamp out drug-driving in the same way random breath testing has changed Sydney's drink-driving culture.
There is disquiet within in government ranks over the strategy, which is being run by Police Minister David Campbell.
"It comes back to the same question about speed cameras, are you trying to prevent behaviour from occurring or is it just a money- making PR exercise?" a source close to the program said.
The source told The Daily Telegraph educators had lobbied the Government to run an education campaign but the idea had been knocked back in favour of implementing a "numbers game".
Police will use the vans to mark out specific areas and events including routes and times favoured by the heavy vehicle industry as well as occasions such as music festivals.
Mr Campbell said targeting operations was "smart policing."
Since the introduction of random drug testing of drivers in NSW, 6860 drivers have been tested with 171 of them confirmed positive to driving with an illegal drug in their system.
Premier Morris Iemma said he was "concerned" about the drug driving "hit rate" of about one in 40 - compared to one in 130 for random breath testing for drunk driving.
Paul Dillon, of Drug and Alcohol Research and Training Australia, said drink-driving campaigns had been "phenomenally" successful with crash data showing a 36 per cent decrease in alcohol-related fatalities over a four year period in NSW following their introduction in the late seventies.
"If you want to stop people you put out public health messages getting them to realise the risks," he said.
"The RBT (random breath testing) is not just simply about mobile vans - it came with an extensive campaign which educated the Australian public about the risks associated with drinking and driving.
"It would be great to see a similar campaign for drugs and driving.
"A credible education message has to be developed appropriately."