After being selected I was keen to research growing concerns within our area that we hear little about from current MP’s in the area. The truth is Gateshead saw a huge rise in drugs related crime between April – August 2009 according to Northumbria Police figures, the greatest increase seen in the area of Low Fell. Sadly, it is also the case Gateshead appears in the top ten for areas of the UK for problems of Alcohol dependence. I do not need to describe to you, the local residents, the social problems this causes.
Having worked for Iain Duncan Smith’s Social Justice Policy Group which formulated recommendations for policy solutions to these growing problems, I am well acquainted with the role the government can have on tacking the issues. I am convinced the next MP for Gateshead needs to get along side all those who are working hard in local organisations to reach out to those who have fallen into addiction.
In November I visited Oasis Gateshead NECA centre on the high street. The service is open to anyone over the age of 18 who is experiencing problems with drugs, alcohol and gambling. I met with regional director Jackie Wales and project manager Stuart Hann to look at their work and offer them support politically in the challenging work they are engaged with.
Jackie and Stuart knew what they were talking about, working on the front line here for a number of years. They described how easily available drugs were. Jackie said you could buy them from the local ice cream van outside school. However, most people walking through Oasis doors had issues relating to alcohol abuse. Alcohol dependence in their opinion was fuelled by the wide availability and particularly the low cost in supermarkets.
There were four conclusions we drew from the discussion which I want to highlight in my campaign.
1. Their funding will in affect be cut by 4% per service user a year for the next three years under this Labour Government.
2. Government drugs policy stops short at helping people fully recover from drug addiction. Instead methadone use is wide spread. The effect of this prescribed tranquiliser drug user may lower drugs crime figures but it does not leave the user in a fit state to engage in normal life.
3. The price of alcohol in their opinion influenced the level of alcohol dependence.
4. Oasis has yet to be visited by a local MP. The question I ask is: surely the kind of work this organisation delivers to the people of Gateshead should be a priority of inquiry for anyone in office given the huge issues Gateshead has with addiction?
I imagine if this is your constituency you may not want to highlight the darker side of Gateshead life that this present government has not solved. However there is message here for David Cameron in policy making too. We all know we are facing massive spending cuts. Yet if NHS spending is to be protected – a Conservative election promise, it is paramount any incoming Government is not short sighted in how it reduces demand for NHS services in the first place. Given alcohol abuse is a big drain on hospital budgets, cutting any level of support to rehabilitation services needs some serious cost/benefit analysis.
I have been invited back to Oasis to visit their youth work. I will keep you posted!
