HC Deb 12 December 1968 vol 775 cc563-4
31. Mr. Mawby

asked the Secretary of State for the Home Department how many registered drug addicts there are at present.

Mr. Callaghan

Drug addicts are not registered, but persons found or suspected by their medical practitioners to be addicted to manufactured narcotic drugs are notified to the Chief Medical Officer of the Home Office. Since 22nd February, 1968, 2,479 such persons have been notified.

Mr. Mawby

Is the Secretary of State satisfied that there is sufficient supervision of these people, who legally can be in possession of this type of drug, to ensure that they do not do what we read about in the Press from time to time, namely, use the drugs on other people and so increase the number of addicts?

Mr. Callaghan

I would not care to say that I was satisfied, because that might be regarded as complacent. I think that the recent Regulations have had a sub- stantial impact on this problem. I think that it is a serious problem.

Mrs. Renée Short

Is my right hon. Friend aware that many of us are very concerned about the increase in hard drug-taking among young people? Will he make representations to the Secretary of State for Social Services about the closure of pioneering treatment centres such as the Salter Unit, which was doing excellent work?

Mr. Callaghan

I do not think that I should make such representations, because I fear that I am not well acquainted with that unit. Perhaps my hon. Friend will table a Question to the Secretary of State for Social Services.

Mr. Hogg

Am I not right in thinking that the figure which the right hon. Gentleman has now given the House represents a very sharp increase on previous figures? If so, can he tell the House what the causes of the sharp increase are, in his view, and how he proposes to deal with it?

Mr. Callaghan

Yes; it represents a very sharp increase, because the new Regulations were designed to produce much more information about those who were addicted to or who were taking manufactured narcotic drugs than was available before. To this extent we have uncovered a great many more people. Perhaps, although I would not want to be definite about this, we are now getting a grip of the total size of the problem.