Waipa residents vocal on legal highs

21 January 2015
Waipa residents have been quick to share their views on the availability of legal highs.

Waipa District Council is calling for submissions on its draft psychoactive substances policy. Psychoactive substances are often known as synthetic cannabis or party pills. By today (January 21), the Council had already received eight submissions on the draft policy.

By law, the Council cannot ban legal highs from being sold in the district. But it is pushing to do all can to limit the sale of the drugs. Currently there is only one legal high retailer in the Waipa district, based in Te Awamutu.

Waipa's draft policy seeks to severely restrict the location of retail stores and to allow them only in the commercial zones of Te Awamutu and Cambridge. Legal high retailers would not be allowed within 100 metres of any library, museum, community hall, recreational facility, school, kindergarten, childcare centre or other educational institution, church, courthouse, public toilets or any premises occupied by a social welfare agency.

If the policy is approved, retailers will not be allowed within 300 metres of each other.

Already by law, legal highs cannot be sold from dairies, supermarkets, service stations or liquor outlets and cannot be sold to anyone under 18.

Submissions can be made up until noon on February 17 and will be discussed by Council at a meeting in March. The policy should be in place by the end of March 2014.

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For more information contact:

Jeanette Tyrrell (on behalf of Council) 027 5077 599