"Because without [the increase], it will be an unmitigated catastrophe," he said. But he said the cannabis cautioning program - which gave police the discretion whether to charge someone for possession - had been a "useful thing". Unlike others at the roundtable, he did not support decriminalisation. “My observations over many years would tell us that perhaps what we’re doing at the moment isn’t stopping people from actually starting to experiment with drugs and then going on to have lives that are significantly impacted by drug use over many, many years," he said. "The whole notion of changing the current arrangements is something that law enforcement’s been part of for a number of years," he said citing the cannabis cautioning program.

In separate hearings witnesses have said alcohol and other drug services were too few or non-existent. The roundtable heard the state needed to double its investment in services to meet demand. "With nowhere to refer someone to, it becomes a nightmare for the officer dealing with a person in the grip," Mr Scipione said. It should be easier to get help than find a drug dealer. Andrew Scipione, former NSW police commissioner He also had personal experience when he tried to find a treatment facility for a friend's adult son whose addiction had spiralled out of control and he was in trouble with police. "I saw this man, who was a good man, change overnight," Mr Scipione said. When they tried to find a room, there was nothing.

"We couldn't get one. I couldn't get one. I am the commissioner of police. And what does that say for others ... that's an indictment. "It should be easier to get help than find a drug dealer," Mr Scipione said, borrowing a line frequently cited by Dr Alex Wodak, a leading campaigner for decriminalisation of drugs. Loading "The decision for someone to use a drug is one that's entirely their business," Mr Scipione said. "Until they decide to get on the road and drive or decide to assault or rob someone or commit a crime, then it is [up to the] police force to bring to the end of the crime spree, not necessarily the use." The inquiry's commissioner Professor Dan Howard said a new position statement on drug policy by the United Nations chief executives board, chaired by the UN Secretary General, supported the decriminalisation of possession and use of illicit drugs.

More than 30 countries have developed alternatives to arrests, some using civil penalties, others treatment, and some mixing both. These changes had been spurred by evidence showing criminalisation of possession had caused considerable economic, health and social harm that outweighed damage from use of the drug itself, said Professor Caitlin Hughes, a professor of criminology at Flinders University. Under the punitive system, stigma was a major issue. Many people were afraid to seek help because they were afraid of the consequences, including the threat of having their children taken away. In emotional evidence, Annie Madden, a founding member of Harm Reduction Australia, said "stigma kills people". "People die in a room next to someone else from overdoses, drug-related overdoses, because they’re too ashamed to tell someone who loves them that they’ve got an issue,” she said.