Opposition MP Marie Louise Coleiro-Preca yesterday questioned whether the fact that the government took 20 years to publish a draft national policy on drug abuse made this merely a propaganda exercise.

Mrs Coleiro-Preca conceded that there were some valid points in the draft and welcomed any positive action in the fight against drug abuse.

She also said that there needed to be a more concentrated and focused push to address the problem. “The national policy also needs to be the result of a collective effort where everyone involved, including victims, need to contribute,” she said.

Mrs Coleiro-Preca said this issue should never be one that involved the government alone. She said that she expected all political parties in Malta contributed to the draft.

She asked where the statistics quoted in the draft were lifted from and pointed out that all goals were not linked to a time-frame. The policy was vague and did not indicate whether Malta was going to take a more liberal or strict approach to the subject.