A new piece of research commissioned by the Big Issue in the North Trust came out last month. Trailed by the BBC’s Newsnight programme and reported with headlines such as “The Cure Isn’t Working”; “NHS Failing Drug Users”; “The Raw Deal for Druggies Who Cry for Helping Hand”, the report, or at least the press release from The Big Issue In the North (BITN) slammed Northern drug services for their failure to stop those on methadone from continuing to use heroin and other street drugs, failure to ‘wean’ addicts off, lack of attention to getting users into employment and not providing sufficient “counselling” services.

Oh we like a bit of “counselling”, do us drug users. We even prefer it to drugs, some of us. And, the fact that no one knows what “counselling” is, or even whether it works, is no obstacle. Just keep on giving it to us. Once I’ve had my ‘session’, my room at Val’s looks like the Ritz and I can’t even be bothered to pick up a set of works. As for detox, all I need is standing on my head while the stuff’s drained out of me and I’ll never look at gear again. And methadone, well, say no more, it’s crap. I’d rather support a big habit selling my body or thieving. That’s much more fun. Although not as much fun as flipping burgers, working on the production line at McVitie’s or getting an NVQ Level 1 in Leisure Studies. Definite routes out of “poverty, misery and ill-health”.

As you may have guessed by now, we think the research has its problems. Certainly the press coverage that resulted could be seen as being unhelpful to users in and out of treatment. Not least the perpetuation of the kinds of myths about addiction peddled above. You’d think social researchers would know something about the law of unintended consequences. If they don’t, BITN vendors may well see its workings when they discover that many members of the public don’t want to buy their publication because they think their cash is helping to fund the seller’s heroin habit, rather than assisting in his or her rehabilitation.
One interesting thing in the press coverage is the BITN’s touching faith in the power of private medicine to “cure addicts”. Apparently, BITN plans to spend “thousands of pounds (on private treatment) for its own sellers who are drug addicts.” Okay you Big Issue vendors, start lining up. It’s 12-Step Private Hospitals for 40 of you at possibly £2,000 a week. Has it ever occurred to any of this lot that the people who can afford to go private are precisely the kinds of people who have other things going for them in their lives outside, other than gear? Monkey would like to hear from any vendor who is offered this opportunity. We’d also like a postcard 12 months later to tell us you’re still drug free.

But we certainly welcome the recommendations of the report and the suggestions for user involvement and a campaign to improve drug services. All the items the BITN report suggests are already on our shopping list. As the report itself says, “The Big Issue in the North may not seem the most obvious organisation to carry out research into drug users views of services. “ Well, you said it. Nonetheless, it gives us a great opportunity to link with some real publicity hounds and start getting our message across more effectively.

The BITN is asking people whether they are interested in joining a campaign to devise better drug services. Well, we at Monkey have certainly got our names down for that. The more users, ex-users and carers and friends of users involved - the better. If you, or your local group want to join in contact:

Simon Danczuk
Campaigns Co-ordinator, Big Issue in the North Trust
135-41 Oldham Street, Manchester M4 1LL

Tel 0161 834 6300
Fax 0161 833 0124