‘A disgrace’: Ice inquiry commissioner accuses New South Wales government of ignoring calls for reform

By Angus Thompson / The Sunday Morning Herald

The commissioner who led the state’s ice inquiry has accused the NSW government of missing a once-in-a-generation opportunity for drug reform and ignoring his recommendations 15 months after handing down a landmark report.

Professor Dan Howard SC said he was deeply disappointed with the government’s failure to respond to the 104 remaining recommendations after rejecting five almost outright, including pill testing and another supervised injecting centre. He said he wanted to know its reasoning for doing so.

The veteran lawyer and teacher also said it was “beyond belief and unacceptable” the government hadn’t responded to a recommendation for more services for Aboriginal communities. He said he had felt personally haunted by some evidence of Indigenous families who remained sceptical the government would help.