Australia: NSW attorney general ‘disappointed’ by own government’s lack of action over ice report

By Michael McGowan / The Guardian

The New South Wales attorney general, Mark Speakman, has revealed his frustration at his own government’s failure to respond to a landmark report on ice addiction, saying he has spent “hundreds of hours” trying to secure cabinet support for the reforms.

It has been 30 months since Prof Dan Howard handed down the findings of the special commission into ice, commissioned by former premier Gladys Berejiklian prior to the state election in 2019.

Appearing before a budget estimates hearing on Monday, Speakman said he was “disappointed” by the government’s failure to respond, saying Howard’s inquiry was “founded on extensive research and evidence”.

The inquiry, which ran for 14 months, criticised the criminalisation of drug users as a “profound flaw” in the justice system, recommending the complete decriminalisation of drug possession in the state.