Matthew Guy vows to shut down safe injecting room

Matthew Guy says he will move swiftly to shut down the Victorian medically supervised injecting room trial if he wins office.

Victorian Opposition Leader Matthew Guy’s pledge to close the safe injecting room represents one of his core election promises, and is a key component of his party’s tough on crime agenda. Picture: AAP

Opposition Leader Matthew Guy has said he will move swiftly to shut down the Victorian medically supervised injecting room trial if he wins office.

Mr Guy appeared with several members of his front bench today to reveal his plans for the first 100 days if elected, which includes a pledge to direct Department of Health officials to close the pilot project of the supervised injecting room.

Located in the inner city suburb of Richmond and in a community health centre next to Richmond West Primary School, the safe injecting centre had been a lightening rod for debate since Labor approved it last year and it opened in June.

The Coalition’s pledge to close it represents one of its core election promises, and is a key component of its tough on crime agenda.

Mr Guy said the approach sanctions drug use rather than steering users to rehabilitation.

Mr Guy said he was confident an elected government could shut the centre down almost immediately by cutting off funding from the health department.

“The state government is funding it, the state government is sponsoring it. This is something that Daniel Andrews said he wouldn’t put in place but he did,” Mr Guy said.

“The state is finding it so once you control something by its funding, you make a decision overnight.”

Premier Daniel Andrews said there was a “very clear contrast” in policy between the two major parties on the safe injecting room, which he said was “saving lives”

Mr Andrews said there was only one room and it was a trial.

“We think the trial is saving lives, and we’re going to continue with that,” he said.

“The supervised injecting facility, single facility, in Richmond, is saving lives. To do otherwise means that those lives won’t be saved. It’s very, very simple.”

When asked whether it could be shut down before Christmas, or even overnight, Mr Guy said the funding decisions would be made immediately and said the Coalition had included the commitment in its plan for the first 100 days.

Mr Guy said the approach ran counter to the Coalition’s plan to curb drug use and crime, but the location so close to a school and apartments and homes was inappropriate.

“I don’t think it’s appropriate to put next to a school,” Mr Guy said.

“I wouldn’t want an ice injecting room next to my sons’ school, therefore I won’t tolerate it anywhere else.”

More to come.