Qld police may face random drug tests

24 Jun 2011, 10:01 am   -   Source: AAP
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Random drug testing for Queensland police is "probably inevitable", acting police minister Andrew Fraser says.

Random drug testing for Queensland police is "probably inevitable", acting police minister Andrew Fraser says.

The issue is back on the agenda after Queensland's crime watchdog said the police force needed to do more to combat drug and alcohol risks.

The recommendation was made in a Crime and Misconduct Commission (CMC) report about policing on the Gold Coast, arising from Operation Tesco.

It said there was no evidence of widespread corruption but some cases - including one officer found to have used illicit drugs, and others who were using anabolic steroids for no medical reason - were cause for a new look at drug mitigation efforts.

Mr Fraser said the government had been considering random drug testing after a review of the police disciplinary system.

He said officers already faced random alcohol tests, and the government was considering the case for expanding that to drugs.

"It is an issue that I think, as the Police Commissioner (Bob Atkinson) said, is probably inevitable," he told the ABC on Friday.

Earlier, Mr Atkinson said officers might have to accept random drug tests in the interests of professionalism and transparency.

He said he was not an enthusiastic supporter of random drug testing, for cost and logistical reasons, and did not believe there was a widespread problem in the force.

But he added: "It's something we obviously have to look more closely now, and it may well be introduced."

Currently, officers face targeted drug testing only if there's a reasonable suspicion of illicit drug use.

But the CMC said a more proactive approach was needed.

"A largely reactive approach to managing and dealing with substance abuse risks is not adequate," the report said.

"Multiple ... strategies are required to deal with the complex and dynamic nature of the illicit drug market in which an increasing menu of substances emerge."

Mr Atkinson said he hoped any move to introduce random drug testing would not spark a war with the union.

"I would hope that they see it as the price of professionalism."

But Queensland Police Union president Ian Leavers said random drug testing would eat into the force's operational budget, eroding the already stretched ability of police to protect the community.

He said there must be a zero-tolerance approach to drug use by police, but targeted testing was the best approach.

"This is just another smokescreen by the CMC and the commissioner to cover up the real issues on the Gold Coast - mainly the lack of staff, the lack of action by those in high roles," he said.

"In the commissioner's own words it's very very rare. If there was a problem I could understand it."

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