RECENTLY, there has been much discussion in the Adver with regard to young people and drug taking.

In particular I refer to Andy Newman's letter and the follow-on from Shirley Mathias. I feel some points need to be clarified before we all start waving the yob banner at all young people who have made mistakes in the past.

1. Those young people most at risk of drug misuse tend to be those most vulnerable and socially excluded in society.

2. These young people include those who have been raised by parents who take drugs, homeless young people, young people abused through prostitution, teenage mothers, and young people not in education, training or employment.

3. Moreover, looked after children a term for young people in care are also at risk. These are children who may have felt firstly abandoned by their parents, and then let down by a system that is supposed to protect them.

What puzzles me is that when it comes to Children in Need day, or Comic Relief, they are objects to be pitied. However, as soon as they become troublesome teenagers, they are monsters who need locking up for life. This is a simplistic notion which doesn't solve the root causes of the problem.

I abhor violence, and anyone who commits such violence to get their next fix needs to be punished.

But one also has to look at the wider issues causing these problems if the matter is to be resolved. I don't know if Andy is right, but the current system is not working for those young people who take drugs, or the victims of their attacks.

A HARRISON

Toothill

Swindon