A CONFERENCE being held in the region later this week will hear how the war on drugs is being fought in the North-East.
Mo Mowlam MP will attend the Cleveland Police Authority meeting on Thursday to discuss what can be done to stop dealers.
Along with a range of experts, she will hear how illegal drugs are flooding the market to the extent that the price for them in the region is at an all-time low.
The meeting will consider a report from the Police Foundation that condemns the present drugs policy, claiming that attempts to restrict the availability of illegal drugs have so far failed.
While the price of drugs is down nationally, the trend is bleakest in the North. Ecstasy tablets can be bought for as little as £2, compared to £15 six years ago, and cocaine is selling in the Northumbria force area at £20 a gram compared to £82 in 1985.
It is estimated that 36,000 people living in the Cleveland area use drugs every month, and about 50 babies are born in the region each year addicted to heroin.
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