Prime Minister Tony Blair to Appoint British "Drug Czar"

INTERNATIONAL May-June 1997

On March 25, newly elected British Prime Minister Tony Blair, then Labour party candidate, announced plans for a US-style anti-drugs "supremo". As part of his anti-drug strategy, Mr. Blair plans to appoint a national coordinator to lead the effort against drugs. Blair plans to model his "drug czar" after the United States' Director of National Drug Control Policy, which he says is a "substantial success" that would be a "valuable added weapon" if it were copied in Britain. The man believed to be the likely candidate for Mr. Blair's "drugs czar", Grampian chief constable Dr. Ian Oliver, hinted that he would take the job if offered. (Shirley English, "Blair tells pupils of his plan for US-style 'drugs czar,'" London Times, March 26, 1997; "Czars and Their Empires," London Times, March 26, 1997; http://www.the-times.co.uk).