Yesterday, the NSW Government formally responded to the 2024 Drug Summit recommendations, as it tries to reform the state’s whole-of-government approach to alcohol and other drug use.

The 2024 Drug Summit, chaired by John Brogden AM and Hon. Carmel Tebbutt, delivered 56 recommendations to the NSW Government earlier this year.

This followed extensive consultation with a range of stakeholders, including health experts, police, people with lived and living experience, service providers and community members.

In late 2024, more than 700 participants attended the Summit forums over four days across metropolitan Sydney, Griffith and Lismore, and 3,669 written submissions were received through an online survey.

The Drug Summit Report highlights the importance of a whole-of-government, whole-of-community response to preventing and reducing drug-related harm.

The NSW Government has supported or supports in principle over 50 recommendations from the Drug Summit, and as part of its response, is committing to the following:

• A whole-of-government Alcohol and Other Drug Strategy: to guide investments and program priorities for the next 10 years, underpinned by a harm-minimisation approach.

• Reforming the Early Drug Diversion Initiative: to address restrictions relating to possession of multiple drugs, criminal history and threshold drug quantities.

• Investigating a medical defence for people using medically prescribed cannabis who are driving: by considering the recommendations due to be provided by an expert working group which is assessing the evidence, reform options, safeguards and whole of government implementation considerations.

• Reducing stigma and discrimination: by examining barriers to employment and exploring how to integrate the perspectives of people with lived experience in policies, programs and training.

Since the drug summit, work has already been underway with multiple agencies committing over $50 million per year to address several of the recommendations in the report, including:

• Homes NSW investment of $10 billion over 10 years in new social housing, which includes a number of different delivery models.

• The commencement of a 12-month drug checking trial at music festivals

• NSW Health’s introduction of 5-year grant agreements for NGO service providers to increase job security and funding certainty across the sector.

• Expanding evidence-based age-appropriate alcohol and other drugs education in schools and other community settings.

• The establishment of a new Office for Youth, which NSW Health will work with to co-create social media content and increase engagement with young people.

• Life-saving naloxone to be available in licensed venues across the state to include as part of their first aid responses, and help reduce opioid overdose harm.

• Raising community awareness and strengthening alcohol and other drugs education and health promotion through targeted campaigns such as Stay Strong, Stay OK, and festival-based harm reduction.

The NSW Government is working with relevant government and non-government stakeholders to release the state-wide Alcohol and Other Drug Strategy within the next 6 months.

The Strategy will align with the National Drug Strategy and include a monitoring and evaluation framework to guide implementation.

The state government's response was met with a mixed reaction from different groups.

Not surprisingly, the NSW Greens said this was an opportunity squandered.

Greens MP and spokesperson for drug law reform, Cate Faehrmann said, “The Drug Summit was meant to be a turning point for evidence-based drug reform in New South Wales. Instead, we’ve seen Labor squander this historic opportunity to reform our drug laws because of the Premier’s lack of ambition,” said Ms Faehrmann. 

“Instead, the government has cherry-picked the easy bits and rejected or delayed the reforms that would actually make a difference. Most of the recommendations that have been supported were uncontroversial and the government didn’t need a drug summit to arrive at them.

“The government’s refusal to support a key recommendation to end the use of drug detection dogs and strip searches for suspected personal drug possession at music festivals is particularly arrogant considering the ongoing class action against NSW Police. All the experts agree that these practices traumatise young people, destroy trust in police and drive riskier drug use.

Ms Faehrmann also criticised the government for failing to support the recommendation for the removal of legislative barriers to allow more medically supervised injecting centres across the state.

“The 1999 drug summit made the bold and courageous recommendation for a medically supervised injecting centre, and since then the Kings Cross clinic has saved thousands of lives. 

“The Minns Government’s refusal to support new sites is a slap in the face to the health experts and frontline workers who have made the Kings Cross Medically Supervised Injecting Centre a world-leading example of best practice in harm reduction.

“It’s also incredibly frustrating to see the government continue to kick the can down the road in terms of strengthening existing drug diversion schemes.

“Diversion is about keeping people out of the criminal justice system and getting them the help they need. Data obtained from my office has exposed that existing diversion schemes aren’t working with the vast majority of people caught in possession of a small quantity of drugs still dragged through the courts instead of being offered treatment and support.

“It’s also unacceptable that the government had deferred legislating a medical defence for drivers using legally prescribed cannabis.

“Thousands of patients are being unfairly criminalised every year for using legally prescribed medicine. Other jurisdictions have managed to allow medicinal cannabis patients to drive, but once again, we see the Minns Government kicking off something it doesn’t want to deal with to a committee."

On the other hand, the Royal Australian College of GPs NSW and ACT Chair Dr Rebekah Hoffman welcomed the commitment to achieving sensible reforms that will save lives.  

“We’re achieving progress, no patient experiencing alcohol and other drug issues should be left behind,” she said. 

“It’s positive news that the NSW Government has supported so many of the report’s recommendations. This includes reforming the Early Drug Diversion Initiative, and ensuring life-saving naloxone, which can temporarily save the life of someone experience an opioid overdose, is made available in licensed venues across the state to include as part of their first aid responses. 

“The College also welcomes the Government raising community awareness and strengthening alcohol and other drugs education and health promotion through targeted campaigns such as Stay Strong, Stay OK, and festival-based harm reduction. 

“We’re making progress, but there’s still a long way to go. We still only have one medically supervised injecting facility in Sydney, and we need more of these services statewide. It’s also vital to expand the reach of needle and syringe programs, particularly in rural, regional, and remote parts of the state where these services can be few and far between.” 

However, the Network of Alcohol and other Drug Agencies CEO, Dr Robert Stirling, said the NSW Government needs to urgently unlock funds to address the backlog of long waitlists and growing demand at alcohol and other drug (AOD) services across the state.

“Today’s response from the NSW Government is a missed opportunity,” said Dr Stirling.

“Between the Drug Summit under this government and the Special Commission under the last one, we’ve had two chances in the past five years to reform drug laws, and unfortunately it looks like we have missed both. 

“That said, we hold out hope the strategy that was recommended by the Summit and endorsed by the government will be developed, implemented, funded and monitored as soon as possible. 

“While we are happy that the NSW Government has supported the majority of the recommendations, there is still a lot that is left unanswered or was already part of the NSW Government's response to the Special Commission of Inquiry into the Drug ‘Ice’.

“We need to quickly progress the 10-year whole-of-government alcohol and other drug strategy. The sector, like thousands of people seeking access to treatment, has been waiting for a very long time.

“We need the funding that will follow the strategy to flow as soon as possible, as treatment saves lives.  

“And we need to ensure there’s an integrated policy and funding response across NSW Police, social services, health services, community and other stakeholders to better support people who need help.

“The strategy must have flexibility to adapt to learnings and evidence that comes to light over the next 10 years, not one that will hold us back until another Summit or Inquiry is called.”

To learn more about the Drug Summit and the NSW Government’s response, visit https://www.health.nsw.gov.au/aod/summit/Pages/default.aspx.