A NORTH-EAST doctor involved in treating drug addicts, will be joining a major police conference next week.
Ian Guy, who set up a GP surgery in Middlesborough and South Bank dedicated to meeting the needs of drug-users, will be taking part in one of the most important meetings on drugs to take place in the UK.
The conference on how to tackle drug use and drug-related crime has been organised by Cleveland Police Authority, and will take place in Middlesbrough on Thursday.
It will be chaired by Dame Ruth Runciman, the former head of the Government's drug advisory council, who recently chaired the police federation study which recommended major changes in drugs policy.
Other speakers include Mo Mowlam and Professor Henk Garretson, one of Europe's top experts on drug addiction.
Dr Guy will give his experience of how treatment of drug users is affected by the law.
It is estimated 36,000 people living on Teessiee use drugs every month and the yearly total for heroin-addicted babies born in the area in reaching 50.
The conference was inspired after a report showed attempts to restrict the availability of drugs had failed and conventional punishments were not dissuading drug usage.
Comments: Our rules
We want our comments to be a lively and valuable part of our community - a place where readers can debate and engage with the most important local issues. The ability to comment on our stories is a privilege, not a right, however, and that privilege may be withdrawn if it is abused or misused.
Please report any comments that break our rules.
Read the rules hereComments are closed on this article