Commissioner looks at Portuguese policy on drugs

* Fact finding: Police and Crime Commissioner Arfon Jones.

A police boss says the way drug use is treated as a health issue rather a criminal matter in Portugal could also be the way forward in this country.  

North Wales Police and Crime Commissioner Arfon Jones has just been on an "inspirational" fact-finding trip to Lisbon where he met the leaders of a number of drug agencies and went out on the streets to speak to addicts.

One of the things he saw was how instead of being put through the criminal justice system the majority of drug users are offered health advice on kicking the habit and also given a sanction which can lead to a small fine if breached.   

Mr Jones, a former police inspector, spent four days filming in the Portuguese capital with a TV crew from the BBC Wales current affairs programme Week In Week Out with the costs of the trip being met by the BBC.

And what he learned can be seen in tomorrow (Tuesday, March 14) night’s episode, entitled Cop-out on Drugs, to be screened at 10.40pm on BBC1 Wales.

Mr Jones caused controversy soon after his election as commissioner last year when he called for the decriminalisation of all drugs to be considered.

He argued that if they were legalised it would take drugs out of the control of criminals and allow addicts to have more support.

Describing his “inspirational” trip to Portugal, he said: “We spent four days filming out there and I very much took the lead in doing the interviews.

“My involvement was really a direct result of the problems being experienced by people in the Rhosddu area of Wrexham where drug users’ needles are being found on the streets.

“I first met Brendan Hughes from the European Monitoring Centre for Drugs and Drug Addiction to get his views and then went out onto the streets of a district called Lumiar in Lisbon with a third sector, or voluntary, organisation which distributes clean equipment to problematic drug users and also does some counselling work with them.

“We also accompanied officers of the Portuguese equivalent of our National Crime Agency to a waste incinerator and watched the destruction of three tons of controlled drugs.

“Drugs are still unlawful in Portugal but this showed that decriminalisation doesn’t mean legalisation and that a lot of police resources are being targeted at supply rather than use.

“We then looked at how drug users are actually dealt with. If a police officer stops someone in the street who has cannabis on them if they have less than 10 days’ supply they are referred to what’s called a dissuasion commission which will then decide how to deal with them.

“If they are identified as a non-problematical or recreational user, as is mostly the case with cannabis and with 90 per cent of drug users in most countries, they give them information on the dangers of taking drugs and also a suspended sanction which means no action is taken against them.

“If they come back before the commission they might get a small fine which is basically the same as a speeding fine. It’s not a judicial but an administrative matter and they don’t get a criminal record.

“The five or 10 per cent who are problematical drug users get some sort of therapeutic support.

“We also spoke to Joao Goulao, the doctor who has been the driving force behind this policy and is now in charge of Portugal’s Directorate for Intervention on Addictive Behaviour and Dependency, known as SICAD.”

  

The commissioner added: “Another visit was made to a detoxification centre called Centro Taipas in one of Lisbon’s main hospitals and I interviewed a young lady who was an addict and asked how she got that way.

“One of the things which impressed me most was a visit I made to a non-government third sector organisation which calls 365 days a year on the 1,200 people in Lisbon who are methadone users.

“It has two vehicles which visit five locations twice a day dispensing heroine substitute. They have a doctor and nurse with them who hand out other prescriptions they might need for blood-borne diseases such as hepatitis.

“Generally, it’s all very joined up and the main difference with us is that it’s a health rather than a criminal approach to drugs.

“They see addiction as a disease not a crime and that is the main message for me from my visit.

“There are far more important things the police can be dealing with.

“I liked what I saw and I think it’s the way forward if the political will is there to change things around.

“It was definitely a very interesting visit and I was inspired by what I saw, although I’m equally inspired by the commitment people here show in dealing with drugs problems.”       

    

Gareth Jones, producer of Week In Week Out, said: “We put the commissioner's views to the test and I think it should make fascinating viewing, particularly in Wrexham where people are talking about drug users and needles on the streets. It’s very timely.”

* You can find out more by watching Week in Week Out, Cop-out on Drugs, at 10.40pm on BBC1 Wales, on Tuesday, March 14.

 

County has online guide to council tax

Your Money, Denbighshire County Council’s definitive guide to all things relating to council tax, has now gone live online.

The council recently set its budget for the 2017/18 financial year.

In terms of council tax, this means an increase of 2.94% for Denbighshire residents, taking into account a 2.75% increase in the county council element, as well as the town/city/community council and the Police and Crime Commissioner’s precepts.

Every year, the council produces a booklet that explains all the facts and figures behind the council tax settlement, how that money is spent and details on how to pay your council tax bills.

The booklet also gives information on business rates, small business relief discounts and what kind of support is available if residents struggle to pay their council tax.

The booklet is produced electronically and can be found by visiting www.denbighshire.gov.uk/counciltax  under the ‘How much is your council tax? section.

LlanBike Fest team completes Vietnam tour

TEN organisers and supporters of the Llangollen Motorcycle Festival - LlanBikeFest - have just returned from a 1,000-mile trail bike tour of North Vietnam.

The team (pictured below)  helped some of the country’s poorest schools with donations of cash, footballs, pens, pencils and sweets.

The boarding primary schools are in remote mountain areas, providing much-needed education for some of Vietnam’s 64 ethnic minorities.

Conwy councillor and LlanBikeFest exhibitor Andrew Wood, who owns Triumph and Ducati dealership Woods Motorcycles in Abergele, said: “Visiting the schools was one of the highlights of an amazing trip. Vietnam may be poor but the government is doing everything it can to bring education to everyone, with very limited resources. We were glad to do what we could to help.”

LlanBikeFest co-organiser John Hutchinson said: “The kids and their teachers were brilliant and incredibly grateful for our support. We take so much for granted in the West, so it was quite moving to witness how delighted they were with our gifts and donations.”

The 10-strong team of friends, including seven from North Wales, two from England and a Canadian, spent two weeks riding mainly dirt roads in the Vietnamese mountains bordering China, crossing bamboo bridges and fording rivers along the way.

Now they are back preparing for the Llangollen Motorcycle Festival, which is at the town’s Pavilion on Saturday August 5^th and Sunday August 6^th.

On-site attractions will include hundreds of bikes, displays, stunts, demonstrations, trade and club stands, plus beer, bands and evening entertainment in Llangollen Town. There will also be a charity raffle in aid of Wales Air Ambulance.

Follow the event on Twitter at @llanbikefest and Facebook at Llangollen Motorcycle Festival.

Day tickets are £10 on the gate or online at www.llanbikefest.co.uk with children 15 and under free, or contact the Festival office at 07960 693398, office@llanbikefest.co.uk. Club stands and exhibitor bookings are free.

Website aims to create stronger communities

llanblogger reader Mike Edwards is amongst the first Llan residents to join a new website which aims to create stronger communities.

Here he explains how it works.

NextDoor has evolved from a website called Street Life and is an application for smartphones to encourage stronger Community ties as follows:

Its a private social network for you, your neighbours, and your community.

Nextdoor’s mission is to provide a trusted platform where neighbours work together to build stronger, safer, happier communities, all over the world. And it's free.

People are using Nextdoor to:

• Borrow a ladder for example 
• Organise a Neighbourhood Watch Group
• Track down a trustworthy babysitter
• Find out who does the best paint job for example in town
• Ask for help keeping an eye out for a pet
• Find a new home for an outgrown bike or similar
• Finally call that nice person down the street by their first name

 

In many ways, Nextdoor and Streetlife are very similar. Both are neighbourhood platforms, whose goal is to connect neighbours and build stronger communities.

However, there are a few small differences that you should be aware of:

• Nextdoor is more local and private in scope
• Nextdoor offers you the opportunity to invite your neighbours
• Nextdoor is self moderated by neighbourhood Leads
• Nextdoor has a real name policy
• Nextdoor has Community Guidelines, which keeps things friendly
• Nextdoor requires address verification of all members
• Nextdoor has groups, for book clubs, running clubs or anything you like

It can be downloaded on the App Store or Google Play.

Search for youngster to sing alongside Sir Bryn Terfel

A search has been launched to find a talented young singer for a once-in-a-lifetime chance to perform with Sir Bryn Terfel and two other global opera stars.

The renowned bass baritone (pictured) will be starring with Lithuanian tenor Kristian Benedikt and Latvian soprano Kristine Opolais in the classic opera, Tosca, at Llangollen International Musical Eisteddfod this summer.

The concert on Tuesday, July 4, is being sponsored by the arts-loving care organisation Pendine Park and will help celebrate the festival's 70th anniversary.

Organisers are now looking for talented boy sopranos or trebles to audition for the opportunity to join the world class cast in the role of the Shepherd Boy. 

Open auditions will be held for the young hopefuls at the Llangollen International Pavilion on Saturday, April 15.

The candidates will be asked to perform two pieces, “I give you sighs” from the third act of Tosca and one of their own choosing.

The concert will be one of the highlights of what organisers promise will be a festival packed with high quality entertainment, including jazz singer Gregory Porter and Welsh rock legends, the Manic Street Preachers.

Later in the week on Thursday, July 6, Sir Bryn and Pendine Park will be joining forces again as sponsors of the Voice of the Future Competition to find the world's best young singers when the finalists will be competing for the Pendine Trophy and a cheque for £6,000.

But first comes Tosca which is a dramatic love story set against a backdrop of lust, political intrigue and murder. 

The opera tells the tragic story of singer Floria Tosca, played by Kristine Opolais, and her fight to save her lover. Benedikt takes the role of her lover, Cavaradossi who is fleeing from Sir Bryn’s sadistic police chief, Scarpia.

The acclaimed Welsh National Opera Orchestra conducted by Gareth Jones will accompany them.

The festival's musical director, Eilir Owen Griffiths, said: “Building on the success of Carmen and Sweeney Todd, this is another adventurous project for the Eisteddfod to undertake. Under the direction of Amy Lane the production will include stunning video work and subtle staging to bring this wonderful opera to Llangollen.

“By combining the excellence and expertise of Welsh and international talent, the Llangollen International Musical Eisteddfod is bringing opera to a much wider and diverse audience.

"We are grateful to Pendine Park for sponsoring the Tosca concert and for their generous support for the Voice of the Future competition later in the week.

"This shows how Pendine’s support helps bring both existing world class opera performers to the Llangollen  stage but also acts as a platform for launching the careers of the stars of tomorrow."
 
Pendine Park proprietor Mario Kreft MBE said: “We are delighted to be sponsoring this performance of Tosca, which I am sure will be a magical experience, given the stellar array of operatic talent.

“The festival is particularly close to our hearts. Music and the arts are an important part of our enrichment programme and we genuinely believe that they improve the quality of life of our residents at our Wrexham and Caernarfon care homes.

“It's promising to be a truly unforgettable evening of world class opera, right on our doorstep here in North Wales and starring our very own Sir Bryn Terfel. It's going to be a very special night and one not to be missed."

For more information about the Llangollen International Musical Eisteddfod and to book tickets go to  www.international-eisteddfod.co.uk

Paedophiles should feel `full force of law' - police boss

A police boss has hit out at suggestions that online paedophiles shouldn't be prosecuted in some cases.

North Wales Police and Crime Commissioner  Arfon Jones was responding to comments by the Simon Bailey, the National Police Chiefs’ Council lead for child protection, who believes only offenders who pose a physical risk to children should face a criminal sentence.

According to Mr Bailey, the head of Operation Hydrant, the nationwide inquiry into historical child sexual abuse, the police were struggling to cope with the huge number of criminals looking at indecent images of children online and should concentrate resources on what he described as high risk offenders.

Mr Jones (pictured), a former police inspector, said: "Any offences that involve the sexual degradation of children are heinous. They are among the most serious crimes dealt with by the police and should be punished accordingly.

"Every time an indecent image of a child is viewed it is tantamount to the abuse being repeated over and over again.

"One of the things becoming clear is that many of the people looking at images like these are also creating them so they are also guilty of contact offences with children.

"In my opinion, anybody caught committing offences of this nature should feel the full force of the law and be prosecuted.

"There are strict sentencing guidelines for in relation to crimes perpetrated by paedophiles and they should be adhered to so that the right punishment is imposed and will more often than not involve custodial sentences.

"Of course, there should also be support in place to rehabilitate offenders once they have been punished.

"For example, the Circles of Support scheme works with sex offenders in North Wales has been particularly successful.

"The COSA programme sees members of the community volunteer to work with offenders and since it started in North Wales in 2007 none of the offenders taking part has gone on to re-offend.

"My only concern with COSA is that, while in South Wales it is funded centrally by the National Offender Management Service, we have to pay for it ourselves here in North Wales."

"Protecting children is one of my most important responsibilities and it will be a priority in my new Police and Crime Plan which will be published soon.

"North Wales Police are already leading the way and the force has established a Paedophile Online Investigation Team (POLIT) to tackle the emerging threat of child sexual exploitation via the internet.

"They work alongside the force's Cyber Crime Team and High Tech Crime Unit based in St Asaph.

"Online child sexual exploitation is a vile crime committed by dangerous and devious people who come from every section of society and often appear to be leading outwardly respectable lives.

"I’m pleased that we’re investing so many resources in tackling online sexual exploitation because the care of children is the most important thing we do.

"Paedophiles are becoming increasingly sophisticated so it is vitally important that we respond accordingly with a team of our own experts catching those committing these types of crime and bringing them to justice.

"This problem isn’t going to go away and we need to concentrate on raising awareness, education and reducing harm and I think there is some excellent work being done to reach this priority.

"I’m very happy to support the force in providing as much resources as needed to ensure that children, wherever they may be in the world, are safe."

Soup kitchen sessions at Holy Cross Rooms

A series of weekly Lentern soup kitchen sessions are to be held at the Holy Cross Rooms in Llangollen in aid of famine relief in Africa.

Starting from tomorrow, they will take place every Friday up to and including April 7 in the meeting rooms which are at the end of the alleyway opposite the library in Castle Street.

Sessions begin with a coffee morning plus stall starting at 11am with soup being served from 12noon until 1.30pm.