Original subtitles

this is a film about drugs about taking

drugs and getting off drugs nowadays I

don't drink or take drugs

but a little bit cool a little bit more

Twix are sort of income Jesus 10 years

ago though I'll come get up the cannabis

booze acid speed coke crack smack that's

heroin

I take drugs every single day

started being afraid of the fact that

you could die

I remember you saying in six months time

you were going to be dead in prison or

in a lunatic asylum yeah I'm hearing

that figure to know what sounds heavy

his heart breaking is a mum when you

bought innocent beautiful little child

into the world see that happen

I got clean at the age of 27 the age amy

winehouse was when she died

Amy's death was a paradoxical

unsurprising shot I felt like I could

have done something 12 to give her the

chance I am that's why I made this film

to have a sympathetic look at our

collision and addiction a condition that

the World Health Organization regards as

a disorder that program any of us are

toxic individuals to be around there for

our family for society at large for

ourselves

I reckon that drugs and alcoholism a

much misunderstood in our country by

users non users and the government we

need to start regarding addiction in all

its forms as a health issue as opposed

to a judicial and criminal issue in this

film I want to learn more and see if we

could do things differently I don't make

no difference to me the money the fame

the power the sex the women none of it

I'd rather be a drug addict if I didn't

have my program I'd be a drug addict

today

like I loved her on the basis of a full

sheet was really really brilliant and

that I recognized this person's got it

this person has got the fame he's not

happy she's outraged this person she

drank a glass of champagne and threw it

over her shoulder I mean I can help mate

we're doing that for children I did it

to impress you well done I heard them

she was something smoking fags and

flicking him still lit around this room

and I got the sense of a ticking clock

thing and spoke to a few other people

about like haters need to do something

everyone said they saw it coming but

hoped it would never happen amy

winehouse who publicly struggled with

drink and drug addiction for years who's

found dead at her home in Camden this

afternoon

that since I had with Amy that feeling

of ah I knew that was going to happen

you know and I just suppose for some

reason because of this flickering sense

I had while I while Amy was alive that I

should be doing saying about that

so that's where Amy live to then Mitch

and dive yeah top left farm crew these

are some of the tributes that are left

it you see though I don't approve of

right countries but you can see that

really made this into a shrine I mean in

the last six weeks of her life five and

a half weeks were sober then finally the

last two days where she drank an awful

lot so things were moving in the right

direction but you know not fast enough

obviously wrongly she she didn't filter

that the rehab was for her she's

obviously she made that fucking

clearance here from 2009 December she

was clear of drugs of course what

happened she didn't deal with the

underlying addiction problem and then

finally it was the alcohol should we

have a quick look at amy winehouse

singin errata let's say hello to Amy

alright love I think our hair wall was

finished

no let's forget this half here paste

between you and me now let the war be

over

you ain't pissed are you love not yeah

that's why I feel guilty in it because I

am alcoholic junkie that got clean and I

in do you know I wasn't able to do

anything you know you feel guilty

because of that fear it's about Amy she

had the power her has to stop drinking

she was moving in that direction what

she was doing was dangerous her it's her

responsibility nobody else's we've got

to get this message across that having

an addiction is an illness it needs to

be treated just like any other illness

and until we adopt that attitude in this

country we're not going to get anywhere

whatever anyone could have done for Amy

now one thing is for sure no one can do

anything she's dead but there's millions

of other people suffering on the same

part of a clothes of people that are

going to die if they don't stop taking

drugs and drinking when it ain't

necessary it's like difficult for the

individual it's difficult for the family

it's detrimental for society and it's

completely unnecessary because there is

a solution

we met and we were like oh we're gonna

shape the world we're gonna do this

we're gonna do that we're gonna have a

TV show Wow and within a year we had a

TV show so what if I do a brief dance

for some broccoli Myanmar tea you know

at a half-ass hairbrained production

company back when I was a junkie this

poor sod suffered horribly as my

alcoholism and addiction accelerated my

loopy behavior complete nudity it's

gotta be worth I'm thinking a color

flower because I've got humerus testes

and there's a resemble a cauliflower Wow

everything we wanted we did it and we're

like what 25 and then suddenly things

didn't work anymore and do do the ideas

didn't come anymore you were just gone

all the time taking drugs

I found this I went to my grandma's

house where I'd hidden their way just

pieces one of those things that I just

never wanted to see again

I remembered after you chunky

this is a finger ionizer disease

whenever I see it as a matter that like

I was a bear in that flat in Hackney and

now I'm in the Savoy Hotel I'm jealous

of me we were just completely lost and

we started being afraid of the fact that

you could die and I've been 8 o'clock in

the morning I remember drinking a bottle

of gin that morning you walk up and

you're like I got a drink this I go dig

this and exploded everywhere it's life

in one moment they sacked you as a

result of that and I know you lost your

flat where you lived in Bethnal Green so

you can't afford to pay for anymore and

those consequences of my actions you

know of which there you know this wolf

so many so many they're just people

being less of them what my mum would

have gone through loads of put my

friends all through sort of so much

we've got no bridge to you dealing with

those kind of problems because or the

only problem you can contend griffeys I

can't cope we've been alive and I have

drugs so what we're gonna do

it's a greedy disease it'll take

everything first it will take your money

then he'll take your friends and it will

take your family your car your house

then it's gonna take bits of your body

and I used to near be scoring with

people that add eyes missing limbs

missing its take it until it takes your

life it'll take everything until it alot

till its last being left and you'll

gladly give it that rather than give up

the chance I'm a recovering drug addict

and know that drug addiction is an

illness it's a disease he says he's not

responsible for his own drug taking

people do it because they want to come

from rich Western kids selfishly

following their pledges Russell Brand I

think you're being called a selfish kid

there certainly is are you responsible

for your actions or are you not do you

take drugs that have to or because I

want to people of course are responsible

their actions you're responsible for

right in for a big nickname are you

Joseph

I understand people who don't regard it

as a disease even people like Peter

Hitchens because drug addicts are

extremely annoying people to be around

they're selfish impatient egotistical

self-destructive demanding total pains

in the ass

Here I am with one now my mate Paul I

used many many different drugs different

substances you know all right

cannabis effective in speed cocaine LSD

ecstasy crack cocaine heroin valium

still the weekend trip to lean you know

painkillers prescribed and prescribed

legal illegal oh I'll get a picture up

so he asked more when did you he now

spends a lot of his time helping other

addicts so I asked him to take me to

meet Nathan a young lad suffering from

the disease why you spending time with

his Nathan character he's 23

oh no which I was pretty pretty young

and he's an example of how addiction

runs right in his family give me a

cuddle before his last we're on the

right track

Nathan I'll be encasing sauce free but

grew up with my auntie didn't have my

I'm undead in my life and well they

better both OD damn heroin

sorry fucking head out that that's a

knee here is my ear definitely some been

a big burden on my life I think about

everyday what I dress dear yeah

definitely like we move on average every

three months was in care that happened

for about two years of selfing I moved

there and get was like something like 23

times I've counted over three year

period

no stability you weren't thinking drugs

because it was fun or something what it

was more about for me was taking drugs

because it was basically it I didn't

have a lock I didn't have a family

dinner Hales on me I was on

and the drug was there for me that drug

was there for me when I was down that

drug was definitely when I had made food

in my kitchen I drug was there for me

when I had nothing to wash my clothes

with so you know what if I was depressed

I'd do some drugs if I was ill IDs from

Joe expired no one to speak to I'd do

some drugs it was definitely for

everything Russell we all have different

stories don't we but all of us everyone

you talk to will say there's a sense of

sadness inside a thing that you're

trying to fill up yeah okay yes it's

always there yeah you'll never get rid

of it by doing drugs it it might work

for the start but that feeling inside I

still have it now spirits Russell mate

is there something Nathan and I have in

common that explains why we both became

addicts is it an illness or are me and

Nathan and homeless junkies just a bunch

of spoiled selfish millionaires you

could professor David Nutt that's my

name that's an amazing name yeah well

what else could I be other than a

psychiatrist

Maryna time identity other than a

character include oh because I said not

in the lab with a brain scan but that

was a good one to get a professional and

expert insight I visited a man I call

the Nutty Professor and we scan their

brains he used to be a government drug

czar bloody stupid term he researches

addiction here I Imperial College London

we're doing the most sophisticated study

ever done on addiction how because what

we're doing is we're taking people with

addictions to alcohol or heroin or

cocaine and we're scanning them in that

scanner to understand what's different

about their brain compared with other

people say like Peter Hitchens the

journalist and a lot of people I think

believe that addiction is a thing that

people just sort of do people just take

drugs for a laugh because they're weak

like and obviously I don't think that

but is there neurological or at least i

catch psychiatric evidence that this

addiction is a legitimate condition

unquestionably addiction that's got

something to do with the brain

most people take drugs almost everyone

in this country drinks alcohol at some

point in their life but only 10% get

addicted and that 10% are different and

they're different because their brain is

different our experience tells us the

addiction occurs usually through one of

three things one is it people get

stressed when you're stressed you

activate parts of your brain I've just

showed it up here to this part of the

brain here which we call the amygdala

the amygdala reactors this dress exactly

any some people it reacts excessively to

stress and we know that drugs like

alcohol can dampen that down and so many

people become dependent on alcohol

because they use it to reduce stress the

second is that people get pleasure they

start to do something which is enjoyable

and then they start to take the drug to

reinforce that that goes to another part

of the brain that comes in this part of

the brain here it's an area of the brain

which has a lot of the transmitter

called dopamine dopamine gets you going

in the mornings but if you don't have if

you don't means not working then you're

stiff and flat and the third is that

some people are just very impulsive

impulsivity is actually a very

straightforward behavior which we can

model in in animals for instance and it

turns out that when you have a very

impulsive rap it has alterations of the

dopamine system in the brain what you do

is you if you tell them that when a

light comes on they will get a reward if

they put a lever light goes on

five-second white food the impulsive rat

can't wait for five seconds I just got

fucking it always maggots exactly 23

seconds there you go and you can find

that about 10 percent of rats are very

impulsive and those rats are interesting

because they like cocaine you give them

cocaine they take a lot more than the

other rats because they have a

deficiency of dopamine they have an

inherent deficiency of dopamine which

this cocaine redresses exactly so it

fits exactly with the human situation

well the thing is when you set that in

like many laughs out of identification

that I know that life I remember from

just when I was a kid if someone goes

like they've just got wait a little

while Russell but know why like it was

inconceivable to me to do that like a

pain like a roaring existential pain

that I would not tolerate

and it's that rat-like reaction to drugs

that makes me one of the 10% of the

population that cannot use them

recreation time takes cigarette butt sir

then your mouth after 11 years of using

drugs

my life was in chaos I was broke in debt

and unemployable cigarette butt what

fortunately I met John Knoll who

physically forced me to go to rehab

there is look Aparna me back

you kept chucking that ball against my

office wall and I thought he's gonna be

a real annoying fucker to work with yeah

but he's good and you were wrong about

the first thing but you were right about

the second and I guess it was that Chris

your Christmas party and I was using

gear in the toilet Louis over the foil

and everything you poor sap mate Oh

fucking I was a heroin are you got a bit

of a problem

yeah do you know me look around about

yeah cuz I couldn't stop I knew I

couldn't stop I didn't want to stop

really then we're going good for me even

though you didn't then out victorious I

remember this is the very chair actually

that I was saying I like you know

getting that information you're a drug

addict it's serious for you and if you

don't stop now in six months time you're

gonna be dead in prison or in a lunatic

asylum

do you want to come to treatment I went

no way and you ain't fought that you're

going it that was the decision Mikey -

you didn't really have much of a choice

weren't any many options for you except

getting on the trains are very same

Edmonds

focus 12 is a charity rehab I first

entered this building in December 2002

on Friday the 13th whose booty ship

summers the man who runs it told me the

whole treatment process would take seven

weeks that was alike it actually took 12

during this free months of he'll they

tricked me into not using or drinking

one day at a time I have your photograph

from the mission you can see quite

clearly that your stunts is a person on

drugs yes and dare I say it

gorgeous no I think you look rather

gaunt and Haggard actually David looking

at me a while oh very good it eyes

hahaha

arrived confused vulnerable erratic

found it hard to stick to a timetable

still happening you had gone into a life

of dependency and if you'd carried on

like that the end result of that

lifestyle is really an absolutely shit

existence although chip may look like a

responsible bureaucrat now he is in fact

a junkie he was a heroin addict for

eighteen years always in and out of

prison homeless for seven years and

three times ended up on a life-support

machine I think there's a real attitude

that you got yourself into this

you know it's your choice you got

yourself into it pay the price actually

there's not a single person who walks

through that door who set out to be

destroyed the way they are to become

addicted and dependent but whatever sort

of joking around that you did there was

within you a real draw you wanted to get

better this is about the group when we

come in in the morning and have to write

your daily diary and there's a rota and

stuff like people have to do jobs and

contribute and that's what like a lot of

it easiest lights or I think it's

learning again to be --have socially and

responsibly I hate it I hate it up into

another right you've got do this clean

in a sector that oh but it's really good

for you to learn in basic things this

gardens a lot better than when I was

here as well

Oh drug addicts there that film them

down there and I name it compromised but

a glance tells you we're talking about

scum of the earth it's weird because you

know they only want to help you but like

it's still sort of CMS adversary's

because really all you want to do is

drink and take drugs the last thing you

want to do is I cut off bill lonely and

sad and I don't have to talk to people

when I'm angry and hurt and that they

all they want to do is talk about that

stuff the whole time they're bringing

that up consistently so it's like

someone's prodding you in the most

painful place because that you have to

learn to do what I said because if you

don't know how to deal with a stuffy

only other solution is to drink or take

drugs that's the only solution this is

the arse end of the mollycoddling things

like me are therapy here they still do

up for fear they said you give examples

of how drug addiction and alcoholism and

behavior has hurt other people and sort

of that not probably never and there you

go oh love my mum

I learned the impact of my addiction on

myself did and impacting my addiction on

the people that I love and the likely

consequences of my continual using I

understood that for the first time

this very spot was where I sat when I

liked after 12 weeks like I would

graduate you terrified of leaving of

going back to London so grateful and

happy I'm overwhelmed by what new clues

for me that when you're a drug addict

the idea of not taking drugs is

inconceivable there's such a profound

spiritual change that takes place

because you'd like you start to

integrate the human being all these

things that you're not dealing with what

initially comes of servicing is

terrifying and settling and awful but

once you know it's the beginning of a

lifelong journey of doing things

differently staying clean one day at a

time works for me

but the problem for addicts in Britain

today is that it's a treatment that over

ninety percent of sufferers cannot get

access to they aren't enough

rehabilitation places

I don't think abstinence treatment is

really regarded very highly I think it's

seen as the kind of end of the road for

very extreme cases because the argument

is very much that you know we have a

response to the drug problem it's called

methadone addict like these at Focus 12

have been prescribed the legal drug

methadone for years to take every day as

a heroine substitute about ten years ago

it became the government's main method

of treating addicts what the government

hoped was if they gave addicts methadone

they'd stop committing crime to get

money for drugs and they'd also stop

sharing needles and getting HIV which is

a nice idea also it's probably cheaper

oils on a photographer 15 years that

Hill is a long time it's meant to reduce

crime and it's meant to reduce your

addiction but come on I'm an addict so I

abuse that just as much as your abuse

drugs it's harmful if not more harmful

my opinion why felonious worse why not

just consider why started to come off

it's more addict difficut into it what's

your way because whatever you are

patterns they say but it costs more

money and it's not dealing with a

problem we got always like this what

deals you be and deals with us me for

though you going to carry to go I'll see

you later okay what helps that for an

addict over the last ten years the

argument has been put forward by the

National treatment agency that we are

being successful we are keeping people

off the streets we are maintaining them

stabili on methadone what are you going

to do with it everything ID that comes

along just Park them on methadone and it

doesn't understand addiction either if

you're an addict or an alcoholic you

want to get completely stoned you want

to get completely erect you don't want

to be stable nobody starts a piss-up to

get stable

I'm gonna get a so fucking stable and I

I'm gonna shit me angry they want to get

rekt yeah so to to give them enough

drugs you either give them enough tries

to get rekt which is just ridiculous or

you don't give them enough and they use

on top so you know and why are you

colluding with something that is such an

incredibly poor life decision on

methadone you've got no chance

of an outcome other than somebody's

still on methadone but why should we

trust ship summers remember those

pictures of him doing heroin he runs a

rehab and is probably biased let's speak

to someone who really believes in

methadone based treatment a proper

doctor who prescribes it this is the

technique that treats 90% of Britain's

junkies

Claire gerado is a GP and the chair of

the Royal Council of General

Practitioners she's considered an expert

in drug treatment she describes

methadone as the gold standard I'm

assuming this woman's a recovering drug

addict who gave a job out of some sort

of pity

Farrah looks this woman she's still

using intravenous drugs that's obvious

well it's lovely seeing you I don't know

ever had anyone like yourself you had

some junkies sorry very mean I do see a

lot of patients with drug users deal

occupations and have done over the years

and I know you for abstinence that's

absolutely fine but I think actually

keeping pay for some patients a vast

majority of mine who are on methadone do

very very well method as a drug if

you're on methadone you're on drugs you

know so like no so for me it's like a

just rearranging the furniture on the

Titanic but can I ask you a question

yeah would you say the same thing about

someone on interested in for diabetic

diabetes or someone on an

antihypertensive treatment for hub for

high blood pressure why is it that we

pick out a medicine that's used to treat

a disease but I also look after folk who

have been damaged from the day they left

their mother's womb damaged

psychologically damaged physically

damaged emotionally who end up making no

friends who who drift into crime at a

young age and then drift into drugs

therefore those patients actually they

do need to be on something long enough

secure enough to sort all the rest of

the bits that they don't have the

psychological awareness I don't have the

the support in order to do what you've

done wishes make an absolutely they

deserve you doctor

well I really want to be clear about is

this is not an attack on us oh did you

not

another moment in McCarran too but

there's an institutionalized mentality

around the treatment of addiction that

is not helpful to addicts because you're

not addressing the underlying problem

I'm not saying using individual you're

doing a really good job I'm just saying

that there needs to be an honest debate

and honest exchange of information and

that the objective has to be I think

from the origin of the truth to get

people dependence free so yes methadone

is going to be a part of that but you

know you say no they don't have the

layers of support why don't they have

the layers of support why is there not

funding for the layers of support I

would love everybody to live drug-free

lives on nothing but I've been a GP long

enough to know that that's not possible

large number of patients still need

opiate substitution treatment whilst

they sort out all the bits that were

missing as they were growing up and that

takes time it's like putting a plaster

around a broken leg

you put that plaster around it so that

it can heal underneath it so I put a

plaster around a broken soul is what

it's like doing I'm not disputing what

you're saying I'm just saying that we

have to be more ambitious more

compassionate that it's not that we need

to address this this problem more

quickly and I completely disagree with

you I've seen extraordinary turns RIT

people turn their lives around in

extraordinary ways and I believe in

people believe in the possibility of

change as long as people to take you

move down they're not going to address

those problems they're lovey be able to

address the problems of origin I think

that is so what the people on methadone

I cannot justify simply whatever cuz

you're not drug addict Talia it doesn't

make no difference to me the money the

fame the power to sex the women none of

it I'd rather be a drug addict if I

didn't have my program I'd be a drug

addict today like that in a second that

walk on her to score round here like I'd

do it gladly and the reason I don't do

it is because of the things I'm talking

to you about and I know that we've

methadone I'd be using on top like most

of the drug addicts I know ah I'm not

being patronizing I'm listening to you

on the stuff you know about but not the

stuff you don't which I continue to

follow up my patients have continued to

see them and to say that methadone

destroys their soul or whatever the

comment you you made Isis good you don't

give them access to the solution that

they require because it but it doesn't

deter them from

she requires okay then we have to agree

to disagree

before I spoke to that GP I met a junkie

in the toilet drinking booze then I saw

her again as I came out this woman is on

methadone is it working for her

I see you drinking some cash today yeah

drink every day take any other drugs

look anyway I smoked about a drachma

again but I was a heroin user laser

sight light yeah just with one escape

last one I was here everywhere was it

like it could be on email but in the

last month I've come to before it is

easy to come off them but it's very hard

to steal really has a stay stop

I think you shouldn't have anything or

but not mess it down no Sonny I don't

know nothing Nana days no no no I wonder

if you'd be coming but you know what the

only thing is like see people actually

gave you the help after you stopped

taking them if you're doing and thought

then everything rather I'm just stop

escaping you may put on a night that be

so it won't come and see me any Mia

actually certainly same company I set

and every day like before being drunk or

like in I don't get high so much now

talking allow you like maybe forget a

little bit a money oh right right but

that's it for me this argument is at the

heart of improving treatment for addicts

substitute in illegal street drugs with

government backed legal drugs like

methadone is not moving addicts on in 12

years I've been to 33 Google's Aviva my

friends or people who've worked for me

former junkie Mark Johnson campaigns to

persuade people that methadone doesn't

work he uses shocking photographs of

addicts who are all using on top of

their methadone prescription to make

this point is this an illness and I

think after seeing an image you know

show the absolute naked truth of what

people do to change how they feel that

the extremities that they go I don't

think can leave you with the same

preconceptions

she's pretty brutal in it intravenous

strategies in the neck there yeah that's

a 22 year old seven months pregnant oh I

know that's not good a distri inject

another groin there like this because

she's like she can't use her veins you

know she all the veins are gone the up

22 while she's usin chooser

13 so

but that somebody's legs he's been using

for about thirty years

mark wants me to meet two of the women

he's been photographing what their names

mate

she's almond camera both women struggle

with lives dominated by crack and heroin

use as well as the methadone that

they've been prescribed for years when I

went to get help I didn't want to go

into a methadone program to me it's like

they're not using it for voice use ways

used to help you get off a pillow in and

deserve me not to stabilize you from 20

years time you're still taking methadone

because you're not ready to come off of

it

you will never be ready to come up with

I believe in abstinence based recovery

myself because it's what's worked for me

I've never tried any type of recovery so

uh what's stopping you from going to

rehab right now them me basically yeah

that's the only thing that's stopping me

it's me I love the drama by methadone

heroin I hate you being in there for

down here and I lots of smoke crack I'm

not gonna lie that's gonna be hard for

me to stop well then why don't you stop

then I'm trying to stop but it's just

taking so long really like funding in

that system don't think you can have any

drugs

I've review because I think that you've

both got addictive tendencies and if you

take any drugs at all you won't bear

control it that's 25 pounds were from

you can but what can open answer the

government that's half of 24 pounds well

me my I think I was probably at my worth

doing and requited a is that all yeah

well I was lucky you know I've not seen

this for a while each other is still

like it's a still like after all these

years after learn life years a surfing

let's be full up on a cry like it like a

girlfriend or something

it's not making you they do that it's

making me a little be excited yeah a

little bit me know that you ain't gonna

go back no I don't know that actually I

own I want to stop that no I always

think to myself that I'm gonna have to

kind of be railroaded into it because I

know that if I give myself a chance I'll

talk about saw where the reason spies

yeah just a few no not so much that I'm

saying I just responsibilities I've got

that I've got a dog um

no seriously he came to detox with me

the last time it's not an excuse my ears

are fucking so yeah this is I can take

him with me so I set an excuse I'm just

saying that he's my main stumbling block

are set for seven months in the phase

diagram Escobar

Escobar a ski what kind of dog is

Escobar

a Stepford two bull terrier he sounds

like awesome he's a part staff part

demon dog he's my baby

he's a sweetly we're making a

documentary about Karen she's got a very

serious dog problem yeah

oh she just can't give up the dog what

one day a time waiver you ain't got dog

problem you've got drug problems so like

I think there's deal with a drug program

I think the love problem will take care

of itself

I'm not you know against the idea I

really am NOT I just yeah I don't know

why I've been so confident drug

addiction is really really real to

myself elicited open I'll come out

I get you know all into trouble again so

I've lost nothing anyway yesterday I

might as well have a go because I just

yeah also what don't forget the upside

the upside is that you have tremendous

potential as a human being that you

could realize and somewhere in you you

know that and recognize it and I know

that that can be frightening but this is

an opportunity to with support start to

access that when could you go

wouldn't it be heartening if that then

when Karen's now got six months clean

and she's got a tentative job and whilst

it isn't always easy she's making

incredible progress yeah it might be no

I cannot just didn't fucking show up

that's like you know really really

likely but like what I thought she made

me feel very very hopeful hanging out

with him too felt like something you

remember in such a powerful way so it's

not like I felt like I'm gonna fuck my

life off and live here and do gear with

these two but there it's more attractive

than you think it's more attractive than

you would think what mostly felt was

titillation stimulation attraction

excitement only now do I think wow how

lucky I am I don't have to live my life

defined by their acquiring and using of

drugs

I believe that people like me with the

disease of addiction have to one day at

a time

have Spain from all substances including

methadone or prescription drugs

otherwise we don't have the opportunity

to address the internal incentives that

are propelling us towards drug and

alcohol use conveniently I found an

expert who thinks exactly like me

professor Neil McKechnie is a world

authority recently given an award by the

World Forum against drugs for his

research on a better drugs policy for

the 21st century we asked edit what do

you want to go out of treatment and

predominantly they said we want to

become drug free when I started to tell

people that was their answer that was

regarded as an incredibly unwelcome

piece of research oh that nobody in the

world of treatment wanted to hear that

predominantly addicts in recovery in

treatment wanted to come off of drugs

why because I think that set a challenge

to them are you helping them to become

drug free or are you just making another

drug available to them when we follow

people are we asked the question well if

if the majority want to become drug free

how many actually do become drug free on

the base of the treatment which they

were given and we do it's tiny after

nearly three years of treatment it was

less than it wasn't even in

double-figures

so over 90 percent was still dependent

on the drugs that they had they had been

dependent on when they'd come forward

for treatment only now we'd added

methadone to the mix as well so they

were dependent on an additional drug

fact the number of people who came off

drugs after three years treatment was

lower than would have been the case had

they had no treatment at all I was

pointless essentially so much that's

always a definition of pointless he

really took the money and the methadone

we now have a window here I'm impact

somebody has got to challenge that

orthodoxy that actually says it's okay

to deliver treatments which we know are

not working because any end of the day

who really cares that much anyway

because they're just drug at it I spoke

to one of the one of the UK's leading

proponents of the methadone program and

he said to me you know Neil if my

daughter was a heroin addict I would I

would do everything and some to get her

into a residential rehab I would not

describe everything

and I thought it's crazy all you're

saying then is that the person that you

would care about you know what you would

get the people who you care less for

they get something different

Neil McKechnie

just reinforced for me the importance of

getting an addict into rehab since I met

Karen and I stayed in touch with her and

talk to about rehab at Focus 12 with

chip according to my lovely mum some

lunatic woman who I happen to live

inside for nine months that was the

moment where everything changed for me

you're happy I went in focus on your mum

I feel like when I was drug addict

well you're helpless you want your child

to be happy and they're depressed and

and you look so ill skinny

not particularly clean had no pride in

your appearance or how you lived it's

it's heartbreaking is a mum when you

fought innocent beautiful little child

into the world to see that happen yeah

oh don't cry will ya

and on that bombshell mum I love you ah

I come round like a biscuit cutter to

make her happy but every time I think

about it it just makes me want to run

away and and just IBUs oh I don't know

just buy a really beautiful woman you

know you've got beautiful hair you've

got lovely features yeah I can say it

it's a brilliant step and most important

thing is you've decided to take it hello

is that chip it is you're right

yeah that is the plan 18 years yeah

methadone 90 mil about a gram of crack

and about half a gram of heroin hmm

because I've had enough it the drugs

don't do anything to me anyway the

methadone is just a pain in the ass

myriad of reasons really yeah there are

more reasons to stop than there are to

continue there aren't any to continually

Popham that I'm an idiot yeah it could

be a train coming you don't know okay

lovely okay then

alright thank you very much nice to meet

you bye

that's good scary one

you feel all right yeah yeah I do two

weeks is bloody quick but yeah he's

cooking

one of the strongest arguments for e app

is that it takes the addicts out of the

community where their lives are falling

apart and gives them a breathing space

to reassess and hopefully move on

another place you think would be ideal

to achieve that is Britain's prisons

because there are thousands of addicts

locked up inside

sniffing EMS is Weaver's way I've got

nothing to be afraid of

over 80% of the British prison

population are addicts or have substance

abuse issues but only one in ten get any

treatment other than methadone to break

their happy

the mount prison in Hemel Hempstead

North London is one place where

prisoners get more than methadone they

run an abstinence program inside if we

don't do anything with them while

they're here we're just gonna block the

problem up if you like and then release

the problem and we're just gonna create

more victims it's gonna be constant

reoffending and they're just gonna keep

coming back to prison that's seven odd

percent are going out and they're not

reoffending in the first two years of

getting in recovery ten is your to your

own people's lives and break making a

massive difference that's what happened

to Nick in and out of prison for crimes

committed as a drug addict until he

became part of the charity wrapped the

rehabilitation for addicted prisoners

trust yeah that's right rapped good

acronym that was eight years ago now he

runs the program here to help the

prisoners a lot of people on this planet

experience obsession loads of people on

this planet no doubt on waking up I have

low self-esteem don't feel good about

themselves might have a central

detachment there Mars might run out the

window but what separates addicts from

the rest of the planet is that once they

start using they cannot stop so how do

we address that bit don't use okay

that's the easy bit you cannot get

drunker than this you take a drink you

cannot get high unless you inject a drug

ain't gonna happen what do you think

hold you lock together strength for

weakness really thank you it's your

ability to be vulnerable it's your

ability to drop all the bravado and

reach out and ask for help and be able

to communicate when you're feeling

scared and lonely doing that in a prison

setting is really difficult but for you

guys in order to do that you're gonna

need support from each other probably

quite hard to confront some of the

things you have to confront while

undergoing the wrapped program he's

helped me to understand why I didn't

become an addict at 17 when I when I

suffered a bereavement I was an addict

from I was 2 years old my manipulation

started when I was 2 years old my

control started when I was 3 in

is the hardest is hard is very bodies

after be president very easy is

revealing and painful you know something

to be embarrassing upsetting this room

at times I've felt a whole sitting there

naked learn oh you're just a malaria

Franklin goes on the easy coke only

sixty prisoners out two thousand in the

Mount get the chance of treatment like

this and yet the success rate of staying

clean after they've completed the

program and leave prison is that almost

half do stay abstinent that's really

good way I see it was only two things I

can't do in my life from now on ones

other drink V other is user drug that

leaves infinite amount of possibilities

that I can do I could live the rest of

my life

on the bed line but I'm going to be

happy because I've been living on the

bed line clean and sober

I still struggle every day it's all

about renewing yourself I'm not going to

preach to you yeah

Ephesians 4:23 fucking ill gonna praise

you just quoted me chapter and verse

constantly renewed of your mind meaning

having a fresh and mental spiritual

attitude that's good in is that one day

a time difference and this is where this

is about I wanted he this time I needed

he you know your children either who

need me my mom and dad want their son

back you know they want that peace of

mind that's what I stole from them their

peace of mind

yeah I can see it a day and so I'm clean

I've never been a mouth clean next month

I'm gonna be a year clean imagine that

after 22 years being a year clean yeah

that's incredible

the odds are that when Barnard comes out

of prison he'll stay clean good for him

and potential victims but rats say they

could be offering the same prospect -

ten times a number of prisoners at the

mount alone it seems that the cost of

the program would be more than offset by

the reduction in crime this evolved

thinking pings around in the

law-enforcing brain of Brian's Chief of

Police

I'm going to see Chief Inspector is that

bad

Chief Superintendent Graham Bartley

chief superintendent grandpa hello

Brighton until recently was the drugs

deaf capital of the UK try putting that

on a mug the way that we approach it

here is that most of our a crime that

involves people stealing stuffs at

burglaries car crime that's robbery

positive crime I don't want to get into

too much police jargon but positive

crime is generated by people's need to

get money to buy drugs

I reckon probably about eighty percent

eighty percent of things that are

getting taken criminally is so people

don't always the case there was luckily

no II had when when I was here many

years ago as a working as a detective a

lot of a lot of the crime was based on

sort of professional people committing

crime for because that's how they made

their living but now it's completely

changed and it's it's all about drugs

the sort of defining moment for me was

about 17 years ago there was a like that

I've known since I was probably two or

three grown up with lost touch with

about 15

really close friend of mine ended up

getting into a passive scene then ended

up getting into drugs then ended up

getting into addictive drugs ended up

not only losing his job because of it

having a steel and then committing

burglaries and he'd been in and out of

prison for burglary and this is

something had a comparable upbringing to

you other than mrs. Lewis he didn't wake

up one morning I'm going to be a drug

addicted burglar acida that made in

Buddha and therefore you know I thought

well actually it could happen to any one

of us Graham Bartlett decided instead of

putting drug-related arrests in the

police cells and then prison they'd put

them into treatment here at a charity

called CRI the crime reduction

initiative less good acronym if what

we're trying to do is help people stop

using drink drugs you need to treat them

decently any trip me respecting

treatment people you need you need to

help people become part of the community

to become a because they've come from

our community the reasons people get

into drinking druggies are complicated

and it's too easy to say these people

are criminals they're dirty they're that

you know that they're part of the part

of the community that we live in and if

you our approaches if you're part of our

community

we'll work with you to help you to make

to help you become full up parts of the

community brilliant way of thinking our

what's your part in this caper i mama

has it's my community as soon as I'll

see ya for ello is as the to his

community this bloke how long was your

drug addict for about 35 years

are you committed then yeah yeah doing

that fo five year period how were you

funding your drug use clearly you had a

good job in the city okay I was straight

bum for many years and flitted through

phases of selling drugs as well which so

I thought I was a bit of a gangster yeah

however I'm not and yeah so I just I

just done damage really I sold I founded

other people's obits other people from

funded mine I'm really good at taking

and and today I don't I robbed me family

robbed your family

good family hey or anyone anyone who

didn't get it at Robert a dumb one is

the drug-dealing violence

stealing from shops from cheese to

clothes steal at his worst

Stephens stealing up to a pound of red

Leicester day how do you help each other

um you know a whole bundle of failings

that some days I don't know what to do

with so I give Steve the ring so I look

because he understands I've been through

trimming with the guy you go to Steve

for to talk about your feeling I do yeah

Steve that's amazing

I made her freely oh yeah what was your

feeling amazing and it works you know it

works this stuff work were you

abstaining from drugs and alcohol you've

stopped committing crimes ah his drug

use a health problem or is it a crime

problem actually it spans both which is

always stuff we've been talking about

today and the treatment works to improve

people's health and that gets your

health gains and it also there is a

crime there is a crime reduction

dividend to treatment Graham Bartlett

told me that in the last six years in

Brighton five hundred addicts who

previously would have gone to prison

have instead gone into treatment between

them they've been convicted of about

21,000 crimes

which 500 I've ever seen in this

absolutely are thought they got about an

average of 40 primes eat and if you if

you apply a cost to that it's about $27

million quid just those people that's

527 million quid yeah just those people

just what they've been convicted so you

made a massive economic saving taking

them out again but every pound spent on

treatment brands eggs free pounds on

reoffending for the UK with crimes by

drug offenders costing 14 billion a year

the savings from this approach could be

enormous I've got this philosophy that

you know users users belong and

treatment dealers belong in prison if we

can understand that addiction is a

physiological issue not necessarily what

one that's going to be solved by by

people being locked up in prison then we

can stop them committing the offenses

that they should be locked up in prison

we can do things differently in policing

and prisons that save money and lives

Brehon this is the message I want to

take in a parliament where I've been

asked to give evidence before the Home

Affairs Select Committee which has been

investigating how effective drug

treatment is in the UK they've taken

evidence from all kinds of experts and

now they want to hear what chipper me

think from inside the problem ex addicts

in recovery this means I am the type of

expert this is an amazing experience

what is incredible is this my love you

you were less I don't know but it's

still a mess illness I'm nice I look I

love we're in polymer live invited us

here yeah we're not broke in the o2

junkies have been invited into

Parliament there you go we're just a

couple of junkies for me it is vital

that more addicts get the relevant

information into recovery change their

lives and become drug free of course

Amy's death is tragic but if we use it

as an opportunity to review and reassess

the way we treat addicts and addiction

and alcoholism in this country then it

hasn't been entirely in vain so her

death is sad but it might not feel so

pointless you're a former heroin addict

yeah briefly could you tell us how you

got onto drugs and then how you managed

to come off is I was like sad lonely

unhappy detached and drugs and alcohol

for me seem like a solution to that

problem if you have the disease or the

illness of addiction or alcoholism the

best way to tackle it is to not use

drugs in any form whether it's

state-sponsored opiates like methadone

or illegal stick street drugs or or a

legal substance like alcohol we see no

distinction between these substances

what we believe in is that abstinence

based recovery is the best solution for

people suffering from this condition you

was that brief enough very brief thank

you

um you were arrested roughly 12 times I

was rough fish

carrot-and-stick butcher i don't feel it

needs to be a carrot or a stick most of

those things in that bizarre meta force

I think what they need to be is love and

compassion so everybody involved you

need to be people to come in criminal

behavior then it needs to be there with

legally but you need to offer them

treatment not simply out some airy-fairy

that's all old ads and hug

liberalism but because it deals with the

problem and it prevents further crimes

being committed having gone through

addiction and then rehabilitation what

is your message to young people who want

to get involved in drugs well my message

isn't for young people my message is for

people that have this condition of

addiction if you have the condition of

addiction there is help available for

you we need to start regard regarding

addiction in all its forms as a health

issue as opposed to a judicial and

criminal issue that we need to change

the laws in this country and we need to

have more compassionate altruistic

loving attitude to the people with a

disease of addiction and recognize that

these people with the proper help access

to the proper treatment can become

active and helpful members of society

like myself some would argue that point

we need to offer them treatment and

activate them and incorporate them into

their society so the message is

ultimately one of pragmatism altruism

and compassion in all areas of the

condition

karen has followed through on the chance

of going into rehab

she's just been assessed that focused

well had the assessment what am i using

how much methadone

am I on when I spoke to them they said

they was concerned because it like the

American method down you'll have to go

on to compensate for your when you're

not using legal drugs anymore would it

be really high and as I take about three

months to reduce you well what they I

was reducing down by 10 mils a week up

until last week and whilst I know note

is doing yeah I did you spent a couple

of days growing then another one wanting

a quiet everyone I think that just shows

the direct relationship between taking

drugs and not feeling emotions and not

taking drugs of feeling emotions and

therefore the obligation is why people

take them yeah yeah but I can imagine

you really clearly off drugs I can

really see you I can see you competent

driving free stone heavier living a life

sorted out looking different yeah I mean

I can really really imagine it for you

that's the thing that's the thing more

obviously than ever for anybody

do you think you deserve to be clean do

you think you deserve to be happy

I'm awesome I don't think you do think

that you deserve it

well I think anyone does who takes drugs

you know

there's loads of people that are going

to die if they don't stop taking drugs

and drinking that since I had with Amy

the sense of inevitability of it so like

when I sort of think of someone like

Karen it was also a really really smart

woman who's going to die if she doesn't

stop taking drugs that's how I see

shit

you