He was on BBC Radio 4's The Moral Maze up against the journalist Melanie Phillips, who had previously attacked DrugScope as being part of a grand conspiracy to bamboozle David Blunkett and legalise drugs. He says: "It made for quite lively discussion. I was nervous, but I wanted to do it because I was angry that she was attacking an organisation as highly regarded as DrugScope." His performance is to be applauded all the more because, prior to DrugScope, he had no involvement in the drugs sector, working for 11 years at the Child Poverty Action Group, five of them as director.
Barnes brings with him experience of both policymaking and young people, an area that DrugScope will focus on in the coming months. The organisation, which works to inform policy development and reduce drug-related risk, is hosting a conference on young people and substance abuse in Leeds at the end of the month, focusing on sharing good practice. It also backs young people's drugs advice line Frank.
"It is important to get accurate and accessible information across to young people - the wagging finger, 'just say no', approach has not worked," he says. It is just as important, he believes, that adults get accurate information too. "Young people want to talk to their parents about drugs, but if they are accessing accurate, objective information but their parents are relying on the Daily Mail, the conversation will be difficult," he states.
It is not just the media at fault. Barnes is critical of Tony Blair's comments to the News of the World following the launch of the recent Drugs: Guidance for Schools document. DrugScope is involved in running seminars on the implementation of the guidance in schools, but Blair's talk of sniffer dogs and drugs testing in schools set the press agenda.
"We were disappointed at the way that the Prime Minister hijacked what had been a thoroughly consulted-on piece of work," he says. "His comments went beyond what had been put forward in the guidance to positively advocate sniffer dogs in schools."
Barnes is also critical of the Government's decision to cut dedicated funding for drugs advisers in schools, which is set to come to an end this month. "Ideally, local education authorities will take over the funding but in some cases there are signs that the projects will come to an end," he says. "The Government is in danger of sending out mixed messages - on the one hand it talks of the importance of drugs awareness, and on the other it pulls the rug from under the funding. I find that very surprising."
Barnes, who studied law at university, started his career working as a volunteer for the Citizen's Advice Bureau, in Kent and an advice worker in Cambridge. He plans to visit drugs projects to help him keep in touch with the front line. "It is important to be aware of what is happening on the ground," he says. "Before I worked for the Citizen's Advice Bureau, I went to get advice there, and I walked around the building five times before I went in. It's important not to lose sight of that."
He concludes: "Young people can feel stigmatised and sensitive as to how their problems can be perceived - we should not underestimate the courage that it takes to walk into an advice centre."
FYI
- DrugScope works to reduce drug-related risk and inform policy by:
- Providing quality information and promoting effective response to drug use
- Collaborative work at international level
- Advising on policymaking and promoting quality standards in service delivery
- Encouraging informed debate and speaking for member bodies working on the ground.
