Harms less hidden

The public’s response to saturation coverage of David Cameron’s alleged cannabis use at age 15 was, overall, a collective shrug of the shoulders, typified by Home Secretary, John Reid’s observation: “I think the public will probably say ‘So what, let’s move on”.

Which might be OK for an Eton-educated politician, but by the end of last week we were on the verge of another moral panic about the state of society, the family and childhood. The Unicef report on child well-being placed Britain at the bottom of 21 rich countries - indicators included relative poverty, teenage pregnancy, underage drinking and drug use. The NSPCC, echoing the view of many children’s charities, described the findings as “shocking and disappointing”; the children’s commissioner warned that “there is a crisis at the heart of our society.”

The warning was starkly highlighted by the fatal shooting of another London teenager age 15, the third murder in two weeks. Tony Blair denied that the killings were "a metaphor for the state of British society", but the Opposition made a link between gang culture, the findings of the Unicef report and problems within families and communities. This weekend the Prime Minister announced a review of firearms law and an emergency summit of ministers, police and community leaders. Criminalising gang membership and lowering the age for a mandatory five year prison sentence for gun possession from 21 to 17 are apparently being considered.

Last year the Advisory Council on the Misuse of Drugs (ACMD) emphasised that preventative measures to tackle hazardous tobacco, alcohol and drug use among young people needed to be much broader than drug education. Prevention is about tackling child poverty, supporting families, the importance of stable family relationships, all ‘upstream’ issues highlighted by the Unicef report. Intuitive perhaps, but it is important that in the context of drug and alcohol misuse there is a greater emphasis on (longer term) prevention, and the opportunity taken to move out of the silos and link more emphatically to other, wider policy issues and agendas.

The trade in illegal drugs and turf wars between rival gangs may lie behind recent shootings, but, although a catalyst, few disagree that social and economic factors undoubtedly contribute. Inevitably politicians will react to demands that ‘something must be done’, hence emergency summits, but there are reasons why the pledge to eradicate child poverty was made and given a 20 year target.

Last week the Guardian reported that the Chancellor, Gordon Brown, is considering creating a children’s minister at cabinet level tasked with tackling poverty and exclusion. The likely next prime minister is apparently frustrated that not enough is being done to help vulnerable people break the cycle of offending and thereby reduce the numbers in prison. Responsibility for youth justice may be moved from the Home Office to the Department for Education and Skills, under the wing of the children’s minister.

There are reasons why some young people who use drugs come to harm when others move on and achieve much in life. Obviously the majority of children from disadvantaged backgrounds do not come to harm, but the risk factors are greater. ‘Prevention, prevention, prevention’ – it has a ring to it.