Peter Dunne became the political face of drug reform during his time in Parliament.

OPINION: Sensible and drugs. Two words that used to be unlikely bedfellows. Yet with United Future leader Peter Dunne, that is exactly what you got.

When Dunne announced earlier this week that he would be leaving politics, his contribution to drug laws was not at the top of everyone's list of accolades. However, Dunne's true legacy will be nudging New Zealand closer to sensible drug policy.

When Kronic was available at the corner dairy, Dunne was blamed for "legalising" synthetic drugs. With a spate of media reports and first-hand accounts of the harms synthetic drugs were causing, there was national panic. Never mind the small detail that the drugs were readily available on the market years before Dunne introduced a temporary licensing period.



The visibility of the remaining retailers only magnified the problem. Enough people said that something had to be done, and the drugs were pulled from the shelves.



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You only have to walk the length of Queen Street to see the harm synthetic drugs are still having on individuals and the community. Now that they are off the market, the Psychoactive Substances Act which Dunne introduced has been blamed for our current mess.



That is unfair.

LINDSAY KEATS Peter Dunne's approach to drug reform might have been too slow and measured to earn him much praise, but it was thoroughly sensible, Jenesa Jeram says.

In fact, the legislation has the potential to legalise the sale of recreational drugs that have been proven safe. We're not just talking about safe synthetic drugs here, but potentially other class C drugs, including cannabis. The problem so far has not been with the legislation, but its implementation. For example, drugs require animal testing to be proven safe, but such animal testing is simultaneously outlawed.

As Associate Health Minister, Dunne demonstrated both the political will and expertise to fix our broken system, both through better application of the Psychoactive Substances Act and the wider regulatory framework. His proposed reforms would reduce the harms caused by prohibition, while ensuring users receive the health system support they needed. He did so at great reputational risk. If he got it wrong, the same moral panic he will be all too familiar with would have ensued.

His approach might have been too slow and measured to earn him much praise, but it was thoroughly sensible.

And it finally looks like the public are ready for change. A poll commissioned by the New Zealand Drug Foundation indicates political party supporters across the spectrum are open to decriminalisation or legalisation.

In spite of this, both major parties are less than enthusiastic to replicate Dunne's political courage.

But drug reform is about so much more than just drugs.

Drug reform is not about middle class professionals being able to smoke a joint in the weekends, although they would benefit. It is not about university students being able to drop ecstasy, although they too would benefit from being able to test the safety of the drugs they are taking.

First and foremost, drug reform is about protecting and supporting those in society who already face multiple disadvantages. It is about ensuring a safe space so that users seeking help can be treated with dignity in the health system. It is about reducing black market crime, and not condemning users to the downward spirals that occur in our crime and justice system.

With Dunne leaving, and an absence of ambition from both Labour and National, it is now up to the other minor parties to finish the job which Dunne has quietly started.

The conversation has shifted from university campus lawns to polite dinner party conversations. Now it finally feels like time for a sensible conversation on drugs to reach parliament.

Jenesa Jeram is a policy analyst at The New Zealand Initiative, an independent public policy think tank.