Review of Misuse of Drugs Act 1975

Opened 1 Jul 2007

Contact Details

• Jo Dinsdale
• jdinsdale@lawcom.govt.nz
• 04 914 4807

Publications to date

19 Mar 2008		Terms of Reference
19 Mar 2008		Press Release

Criminal Law
It has been more than 30 years since the Misuse of Drugs Act 1975 was first enacted. The Act has been amended on numerous occasions and is complex and difficult to understand and navigate. The Act’s framework is based on the recommendations of the 1973 report of the Blake-Palmer Committee and largely reflects the drug policies and issues of that era. There is concern that the Act is not well aligned with New Zealand’s National Drug Policy and does not provide a coherent and effective legislative framework for responding to the use of psychoactive drugs. The objective of the review is to propose a contemporary legislative framework for regulating drugs that is consistent with New Zealand’s international obligations concerning illegal and other drugs and reflects current knowledge and understanding about drug related harm. Current stage of the review: The Law Commission is currently working on an issues paper which will set out what we see as the key issues and problems to be resolved and make suggestions for reform. Chapters of the issues paper will canvass the following range of topics: drug use and the harms arising from drug use; New Zealand’s drug policy; the history of drug regulation in New Zealand; the approach we currently take to drug regulation; the international conventions that apply to drugs; the different justifications for regulation and the various models of regulation that are available; an overview of drug treatment, education and other strategies for reducing drug related harm; criminal sanctions and law enforcement; and the options for reform. The issues paper will be available early 2010. Public submissions will be invited on the paper.