Kuriger BarbaraSUBSTANCE ADDICTION (COMPULSORY ASSESSMENT AND TREATMENT) BILLThird ReadingDebate resumed from 8 February.BARBARA KURIGER (National—Taranaki - King Country): It is a pleasure to take a call on the Substance Addiction (Compulsory Assessment and Treatment) Bill. It is a bill that is replacing 1966 legislation and it has huge potential to reduce the overall cost of addiction to society.There are a lot of families out there who for reasons of drug abuse have family members who have really hit a low and families are ill-equipped to handle it. The people concerned have got themselves into such a low low space that they are not able to recognise this and are not able to seek help for themselves. I think that when it gets to that point it is our role to look after those people as part of our society.The bill is about repealing the Alcoholism and Drug Addiction Act of 1966. Most people who use alcohol or other drugs do not need compulsory treatment and can do well when they choose to engage in a treatment programme. They are still in the recognition phase and they can take themselves off and ask for help. However some people really are so unwell that they are unable to make that decision for themselves.Intoxication from alcohol or other drugs even if frequent or distressing is not the same as addiction. It is completely different. So we do not want people getting the impression that this is a piece of legislation that is going to be used just for taking people and restraining them in an institution for very little reason. It is going to be taken very very seriously.In December 2015 the Government launched the Mental Health and Addiction Workforce Action Plan to help ensure that we have well-trained mental health and addiction staff to meet increased demand and the future needs of New Zealanders. There are four key areas in which this plan works. One of them is primary care and community care; another one is the integration between primary care and secondary care; then we have specialist training pathways; and then we have addiction treatment pathways. Detention is less dependent on the ability to lock doors than it is on the ability of services to keep patients sufficiently engaged in a way that minimises their interest in and opportunities for absenting themselves.The Health Committee has worked hard on this and is a great team. We have really good discussions in our committee and it is a pleasure to be part of it. We talked a lot about the meaning of severe substance addiction. For someone to be diagnosed with severe substance addiction they need to have at least two of the features listed in clause 8(2) of the bill: (a) neuro-adaptation to the substance: (b) craving for the substance: (c) unsuccessful efforts to control the use of the substance: [and] (d) use of the substance despite suffering harmful consequences." The test is that the specialists and those who are giving care need to be able to identify two out of four of those features. Generally the compulsory stage lasts for a minimum of 6 weeks.I really think this is an important piece of legislation. P and other drugs are causing huge problems to society in New Zealand these days. It is my pleasure to commend this bill to the House. Thank you."