Emotions spill at legal highs hearing

Wanganui District Council PHOTO/FILE

A father was in tears as he told a Wanganui District Council hearing yesterday the impact legal highs had had on his 14-year-old son.

The man and his wife were among those making submissions on the council's proposed psychoactive local approved products policy (LAPP) which started yesterday.

The Chronicle will not name the man because it will identify the teenager, but he broke down on a couple of occasions as he spoke about the changes in his son's personality since he tried legal highs. He said older teenagers had provided both alcohol and legal highs to young people at a party, and it was only the action of his older brother that saved the younger boy from possibly choking to death after consuming both alcohol and psychoactive drugs.

The father said young people were able to get easy access to the legal highs, often finding out about their availability on Facebook and other social media.

"My child's life has been destroyed by this stuff and he's only 14 years old. I don't know how we're going to keep him away from this stuff in the next few years."

The council policy will restrict the sale of psychoactive substances in the city by confining retailers to the central business district but not in Victoria Ave and not within 50 metres of sensitive sites (such as schools) as well as keeping a lid on the time these substances will be allowed to be sold.

Judy Kumeroa, representing Te Ora Hou Whanganui and Stone Soup Community, said her group held the view that legal highs should be banned outright.

"We're thinking of our vulnerable people. We're hugely concerned with the mixed messages about legal highs and fearful of its effects on people," Ms Kumeroa said.

Another woman spoke of her 40-year-old daughter who took a legal high and started to experience psychosis.

"She left her husband and, a year later, had her two children taken off her," the mother said.

Her daughter had been diagnosed with drug-induced psychosis.

"She is abusive, cruel, bitter and unremorseful. My beautiful girl ... so sad."

Sarah Hawken, a health promoter with the Whanganui District Health Board, said the long-term health risks of legal highs were relatively unknown but anecdotal evidence showed physical, emotional and social harm.

Julie Herewini, operations manager for Nga Tai o Te Awa, told the hearing the sole purpose of those making and selling legal highs was to make money.

Ms Herewini said the country had committed to being smokefree by 2025 so it made no sense to allow the introduction or offer support in any way to an industry "that brings a whole new class of addictive smoking to the market".

The hearing continues today before the committee deliberates on the submissions. It has been delegated powers to endorse the policy.