National announces plan to tackle methamphetamine

National Party leader Judith Collins says methamphetamine harm will no longer be put in the "too hard basket" in a Government under her watch.

On a visit to Napier on Monday Collins announced the party's plan which will tackle supplies coming into prisons, target organised crime networks, increase drug dogs at airports and establish a $50 million contestable fund for reduction programmes.

It will also use a health response modelled on the successful Matrix programme up in the 1990s in the US to tackle its cocaine epidemic.

Collins told a media pack following her campaign at the Napier War Memorial Conference Centre that wastewater testing showed meth now accounts for over half of NZ's detected drugs, and caused up to $1b a year in social harm.

"What the numbers hide is the individual tragedy and the tragedies of those who fall victim to meth the families ripped apart by meth and the victims who suffer the consequences of violent attacks. We cannot continue to say it is too hard to do anything about it.

Collins said Labour had "very quietly" rescinded National's 2017 plan to deal with meth when it came into office, and what it had created was a "piecemeal approach".

"This is something that destroys people.

"To me it's really sad that it's been put in the too hard basket by some people.

"This is a drug that affects every strata of society. Every profession, every trade, every job has this in it. It is not solely people involved in the transport industry or journalism or politics or anything like that. It is right through society.

Collins said the disruption of supply, combined with a strong health response, would be hard but it was not so hard that NZ couldn't do it.

"We've got supposedly closed border now, it can't be that difficult can it?"

The policy had yet to be costed but would be in National's fiscal plan, she said.

National plan to tackle demand will:

• Deploy the Matrix Methamphetamine Treatment Pilot Programme across District Health Boards to provide direct support to those recovering from methamphetamine use.

• Add 13 detox beds for methamphetamine across New Zealand, ensuring every district health board has at least one.

• Ensure at least one full-time equivalent specialist per DHB is available to assist with in-patient detoxing from methamphetamine.

• Establish a contestable fund of $50 million to pilot new or scaled-up whole-community harm reduction programmes.

• Establish best practices for frontline police to refer meth users to DHBs, Ministry of Social Development, education resources and community-based support.

Health spokesperson Dr Shane Reti said National will reduce demand by improving the health response and providing new treatment options.

Justice spokesperson Simon Bridges said there must also be a strong response from law and order agencies to disrupt meth entering the country.

"We will build capacity to interdict the international crime cartels that are bringing this problem to our shores. Good intelligence and international co-operation will be a priority under National.

"There can be no tolerance for the dealing and supply of methamphetamine. Those who peddle this drug are responsible for the misery and social harm it causes."

National's plan to tackle supply will:

• Increase funding for drug intelligence to enable Customs, police and health authorities to identify drugs coming into the country.

• Increase funding for police and health to identify new drugs and bad batches sooner.

• Introduce more drug dogs at airports and ports.

• Identify a new supply disruption strategy to reduce methamphetamine use in Corrections facilities.

• Target domestic organised crime networks with extra focus and resourcing from police.