Decline and fall of ‘tsar’ stripped of his power

By Ian Burrell

Independent

11 July 2002

When David Blunkett was appointed Home Secretary in May last year, one of his first decisions was to axe the role of drugs tsar.

Keith Hellawell, the first and probably last incumbent in the post, had been appointed with a fanfare by Tony Blair in 1997 but found himself unceremoniously dumped. To Mr Blunkett, the cross-departmental role of the “UK Anti-Drugs Co-ordinator” had served its purpose. The Home Secretary wanted the Home Office to take back responsibility for drugs so he could pursue his own plans for reform of the laws. Mr Hellawell, who was retained in a part-time international advisory role, claiming that he no longer wanted a full-time position, was marginalised.

Commenting on the former drugs tsar’s resignation yesterday, Roger Howard, chief executive of the influential charity DrugScope, and Simon Hughes, the Liberal Democrat home affairs spokesman, described Mr Hellawell as “out of touch”.

It was a sad indictment of a man who had laid the building blocks of the Government’s drugs policy.

The former chief constable of West Yorkshire was responsible for drawing up a 10-year drugs strategy, the first real attempt to take a long-term view of the problem.

The radical approach was responsible for focusing public attention on the subject of drugs and raising its profile within the political arena.

Mr Hellawell, who reported directly to the Prime Minister and earned £106,000 a year, won admirers within the drugs prevention industry as he lobbied hard for extra resources for treatment centres and information programmes.

His most important legacy was in helping to drive forward a big increase in drugs education in British schools, aimed at reducing long-term demand for illicit substances.

But the long-term approach did little to endear him to government political strategists, who despaired at the lack of tangible success. Stories began appearing, suggesting that unnamed ministers believed that the drugs tsar should be deposed.

When Mr Blunkett arrived at the Home Office, he switched Mr Hellawell to a two-days-a-week advisory role on international drugs issues. Drugs experts have been at a loss to explain his achievements in this role.

An exasperated Mr Hellawell tendered his resignation at the end of last month, apparently asking for the decision to be kept secret. But yesterday he exacted his revenge on Mr Blunkett in a piece of news management that must have impressed even New Labour’s spin doctors.

He revealed his resignation on national radio hours before the Home Secretary was to make his most important pronouncement on drugs policy.

Mr Hellawell said Mr Blunkett’s new policy would “virtually be decriminalisation of cannabis and this is giving out the wrong message”. He continued: “Cannabis is simply not a sensible substance for people to take. There are strains of cannabis that are extremely powerful, hallucinogenic and very dangerous. It’s moving further towards decriminalisation than any other country in the world.”

Iain Duncan Smith said Mr Hellawell’s departure was “a personal blow for the Prime Minister and punches a huge hole in the Government’s drugs policies”.

But Danny Kushlick, director of pro-legalisation campaign group Transform, said he was “delighted to see the back of Mr Hellawell” and added: “His statement that the UK has gone further in decriminalising drugs than anywhere else in the world shows just how ignorant he is of what is happening outside his office. In fact, half a dozen European countries have decriminalised possession of all drugs.”

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