Editorial: Shops need to cut drug

Mayor Kevin Winters and local police have acted swiftly to take a strong stance on synthetic cannabis and other legal highs.

They announced on Tuesday they will revoke liquor licences for anyone wanting to sell legal highs at alcohol stores, saying they would deem these businesses unsuitable to hold a liquor licence.

Today, the Psychoactive Substances Bill will have its third and final reading in Parliament and it's likely it will be in force by next week. This will mean these products can only be sold under stricter conditions, including new licensing laws and manufacturers having to prove there are no harmful effects.

While the council and police's new stance sounds like they are taking a hard line, only time will tell if it will make any real difference.

It's unclear how many liquor outlets currently sell legal highs as they are not yet required to have a licence. If there are any at all in Rotorua, it will only be a small number.

But those wanting to get their hands on the stuff aren't likely to change their minds just because they can't conveniently buy it while getting their grog.

They will just make a stop at the bigger and more popular legal high retailers. I'm sure those retailers are welcoming the council and police's new policy - it means more business for them.

It's clear local communities need to stamp out this craze. Herbal highs are dangerous. Check out Inspector Ed van den Broek's column in yesterday's Rotorua Daily Post. He said frontline staff have had to deal with some terrible incidents of people high on the drugs, including a 15-year-old who had consumed K2 falling flat on his face while being spoken to by a police officer. He had to be taken away by ambulance.

Wouldn't it be great if our local stockists followed the leads of Timaru and Putaruru stores that have agreed not to stock the products at all.

For this to happen locally, it will take more than just the mayor and the police to come up with new rules. Residents need to put pressure on stockists to make them see past the almighty dollar and understand legal highs are not welcome in our community.