2025-07-17
Opening the ACT’s first safe injecting room should be a priority during this term of government, says Leader of the ACT Greens, Shane Rattenbury.
Quotes attributable to Leader of the ACT Greens, Shane Rattenbury:
“In cities like Sydney and Melbourne, safe injecting rooms have been operating for years. But despite Canberra at times recording the highest rate of drug-induced deaths per capita in the country, we still don’t have one.
“A commitment to investigate a safe injecting room was hard-won by the Greens in the last Parliamentary Agreement—but Labor dragged their feet for most of the term–having done no work on this while holding the portfolio.
“It wasn’t until three years in, after a cabinet reshuffle handed the drug harm reduction portfolio to Greens Minister Emma Davidson, that this critical work finally began–with a review into how, not if, but how this work would happen.
“The fact is, this reform is thirty years overdue. Every delay, every review, means more preventable overdose deaths—and that is simply unacceptable.
“If we’re serious about saving lives, we need to treat drug use as a health issue, not a criminal one. That means backing evidence-based, community-led harm reduction services—not leaving people to use alone on the streets.
“Right now we need outcomes— the Greens are flexible on location for this site, but we’re absolutely clear on the need for action. No matter whether it’s co-located with the fixed-site pill testing clinic in Civic or some other location that suits users, what matters is getting it done–and getting it done soon.
“The Greens are really clear: today we’re calling on the government to set-up a safe injecting room in this city before the end of the year. This morning I have written to the Health Minister outlining this ask, and offering the Greens’ support for a collaborative, cross-party approach to making this a reality