Belfast Calls for a Zero Tolerance Policy to Drugs

Belfast councillors have called for a zero tolerance policy towards drugs in the city. The issue was debated at a special meeting of the council on Monday.

Councillors voted to call on the police and departments of health and education to take stronger action in tackling the rising problem. It follows figures from the Department of Health that show that more than 500 children under the age of 15 have tried to take own life in the last six years.

The department's statistics show that about 23,000 people have been treated in hospital after trying to kill themselves since 2001.

This common sense approach taken by the Belfast City councillors is to be welcomed, and stands in stark contrast to the dangerous, ineffective, immoral and irresponsible suggestions recently put forward by the chief constable of North Wales regarding the same issue.

Also today, a report by the Nuffield Council on Bioethics has sharply criticised the Government's strategy of using publicity campaigns and voluntary labelling schemes, saying they are ineffective.

It calls for an urgent study into the impact of 24-hour licensing on alcohol consumption after the annual number of alcohol-related deaths doubled to over 8,000 in 2005 from just over 4,000 in 1991.

Lord Krebs, who chaired the Nuffield Council committee which produced the report, said: "There is also an urgent need for an analysis of the effect of extended opening hours on levels of alcohol consumption, as well as on anti-social behaviour."

Excessive drinking among young people is a particular cause of concern, the Nuffield Council report says.

The Nuffield Council report also names obesity and smoking, as areas where more needs to be done to improve public health.

Clearly “tolerance” is not the way to effectively deal with these issues. The “if it feels good, then it can’t be wrong” idea may indeed be popular, but let’s not deceive ourselves by believing that it is anything other than an overspill of the deluded mistakes of the 1960’s counter-culture mindset. The reality is that great harm is being done to the citizens of the United Kingdom, especially the youth.

The demonstrable fact is that a zero tolerance approach is the only proper and effective way of dealing with certain issues in the real world. It is most regrettable that many today choose to ignore reality, preferring to regurgitate the harmful mistakes of a failed generation.