Topic suggestions for Alcohol & Other Drugs / Youth Mental Health Debates
Imagine you are in the Affirmative team, or the Negative Team.
Do you agree or disagree with the statements? Why? Prove your point.

• Drug use shows lack of self-control.
• All drugs should be treated equally by law.
• Naturally occurring drugs are safer than chemically produced drugs
• A time will come when no-one uses drugs recreationally.
• If more people use a drug, that makes it OK.
• All drugs are bad.
• All drugs are good.
• Money spent on drug prohibition enforcement should be spent on other things.
• Alcohol should be made illegal, like other drugs.
• The legal alcohol purchase age should (not) be raised back to 20 years / remain at 18 years.
• Lowering the alcohol purchase age to 18 has had a detrimental effect on the health & well-being of NZ youth.
• Schools should [not] use outside agencies to teach drug education.
• There’s nothing for young people to do in our town.
• It’s OK for parents to use or grow cannabis as long as they don’t let their kids have any.
• After-Balls shouldn’t be supported by schools
• Think of a statement about your organisation’s Alcohol and Other Drug policy… and debate it…

Some more questions to prompt discussion and debate – what do YOU think?

• How do you define the word “drug”? See Definitions of the word: Drug
• How much does drug prohibition cost NZ each year?
• If all drugs were legal, would u use them? Which ones?
• Why is it OK (legal) to advertise alcohol?
• What is a crime?
• What is a law?
• Why is alcohol not illegal like other drugs?
• What ways can drugs be classified, eg legal, illegal, medicinal, recreational, prescription, etc.
• How do you know/decide which drugs fit which category?