AFP cop demands Australia has ‘honest’ conversation about drugs

Children born to meth addicted parents are the real victims of the nation’s ice crisis, the AFP commissioner has said.

Australian Federal Police Commissioner Reece Kershaw believes children born to meth addicted parents are the real victims of the nation’s ice crisis, declaring “as a society, we have to ­ensure parents are not buying meth over milk”.

In a speech to be delivered to the National Press Club, Mr Kershaw will ­demand Australians have an “honest” conversation about drugs.

“There are too many cases where children are going hungry or neglected because their parents are continuously feeding their addiction,” Mr Kershaw is expected to say.

“As a society, we have to ensure parents are not buying meth over milk.”

Australian Federal Police Commissioner Reece Kershaw said children are the real victims of the nation’s ice crisis. Picture: Sean Davey

It follows the blockbuster arrest of hundreds of Australian organised crime figures last month in Operation Ironside, a Trojan horse ploy in which federal agents promoted the Anom messaging app to the criminal world and read every word they shared.

Mr Kershaw said, in one state, ice was a major factor it up to 39 per cent of cases where a child had to be taken into care.

“I’m told there’s little more gut-wrenching than hearing a newborn wail as they struggle with withdrawing from methamphetamine. One child born to meth-addicted parents is one child too many.

“Most drug users need to get their drugs from someone, and overwhelmingly there is a direct link to transnational serious organised crime.

“Every drug trafficker and organised criminal charged by the AFP ensures our communities are safer,” he said.

Mr Kershaw claims “personalised drug use” was a misleading concept given the fallout from a person’s decision to take drugs.

He will point to the horrific death of four children from the Abdallah and Sakr families at Oatlands in 2020 to make his point.

“The Sydney driver, now jailed for killing those four children, had a blood-alcohol level three times the legal limit but also cocaine and MDMA in his system at the time of the crash.

“There is no concept of personalised use of drugs because one user’s actions can have far-reaching consequences for those around them – loved ones or strangers.”

He said taking criminal kingpins off our streets was akin to protecting children and frontline health staff.

“First responders and our frontline workers – whether they are police, nurses, doctors, paramedics and teachers – should be able to go to work without being violently ­assaulted by an uncontrollable addict,” he said.