Last week, Parliament voted to reclassify methamphetamine, or 'P' to a class A drug and the Green Party was alone in opposing it. United Future's Peter Dunne howled that the Greens never met a drug we didn't like, but the fact is this move was little more than an election pay-off. This move won’t work, let me explain why.

The first thing to say is that the whole of the Green Party and myself are extremely concerned about the increasing use of methamphetamines, and in particular the increased used of crystal methamphetamine, known as P or pure. I have been on record, speaking out on this issue many, many times. I have probably spoken out on this issue before many members of this House had even heard of P.

The Green Party is totally opposed to the use of P, and is very interested in looking constructively at measures that we can take to reduce its use and abuse. There is a P epidemic that is going on in this country, which is a serious problem, with increased levels of violence and high levels of dependence because of it.

But I have to say that reclassifying methamphetamines to a class A drug will do absolutely nothing at all to address this situation.

The main effect of the reclassification is to increase maximum sentences, from 3 months to 6 months for use and possession, and from a maximum of 7 years to life for manufacture and supply. People think that this will provide a great deterrent for people who would otherwise be manufacturing methamphetamine, but this is not true.

If you compare the sentencing patterns for class A drugs over the last 20 years with the sentences for class B drugs, essentially they are the same. One year there may be a 2 month or a 1 month’s difference on the average sentence, but by and large, the sentencing for class A and class B manufacturing or supply is essentially the same. So the argument that this will suddenly create that great deterrent is just a total fallacy.

It is the likelihood of being caught that is the greatest deterrent, and this reclassification will do nothing to increase the likelihood that people will be caught for manufacturing or supplying methamphetamine

The argument is being used that these changes will make P a higher priority for police. That is absolutely untrue. If the police wanted to make methamphetamine a priority, they could do that today. They could have done that yesterday if they chose to do that. When one remembers that over half of the drugs budget by police is spent on cannabis, which is a class C drug, one has to realise that rescheduling to a class A drug will do nothing to make it more of a police priority.

The real question this we have to ask is whether there is any evidence that this move will do anything to reduce the use of P, or methamphetamines, in this country. The reality is that it will not make a damn bit of difference. What is this reclassification really about? It is clearly, simply another election buy-off to keep Peter Dunne's United Future Party in tow.

A solution lies with credible drug education and we have to put more money into it. We have to put more money into treatment. We should also target the precursors that are used to make methamphetamines because pseudo ephedrines and such compounds are widely available in this country.

What we need is a mix of demand reduction through education and treatment, and supply reduction by cutting down on those chemicals that are used to make methamphetamines. However, that would take a real commitment in terms of real resources. Not this feel-good stuff that makes Peter Dunne feel important and wonderful.

We must do something about the P problem, but a real solution must have real resources that would go into having a real effect on the ground.