It's "clutching at straws" to think the money seized from the alleged drug syndicate bust in Wellington could be used on a rehabilitation facility in the region, says Dubbo MP Dugald Saunders.
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Dubbo mayor Ben Shields is pushing for the NSW government to spend the $500,000 seized in the bust on a drug and alcohol rehabilitation centre and detox facility.
He said the money should be used to make sure any new suppliers had a reduced number of people who were seeking drugs.
But Mr Saunders said the situation wasn't that simple.
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He said while the money obtained from the proceeds of crime was used towards for crime prevention, it couldn't be used until those connected to the money went through the criminal justice system.
"To say you can take the money that has been delivered from a drug bust a couple of weeks ago and put it towards a drug rehab centre now is clutching at straws a little bit. The money will go into revenue in the next couple of years and it will be processed the way proceeds of crime money is processed," Mr Saunders said.
He also refuted the $500,000, saying the final amount seized was currently unknown.
The federal government has pledged $3 million towards a rehabilitation facility in Dubbo, while council has offered to provide the land.
Mr Saunders said he wanted to see not only a rehabilitation facility, but also a detox facility and drug court.
He said he had been lobbying the attorney-general, health minister, treasurer and premier about it for some time.
"I want to get something that works and I've approached the treasurer about the funding. But bearing in mind, everything is pre-COVID-19," he said.
"We're now going to be heading into a post-COVID-19 scenario where everything looks a lot different than it did back in March."
However, the Dubbo MP said the government was committed to make sure they looked for the "best possible opportunity" in dealing with a situation that had been "affecting the community for some time".
Cr Shields said it was ludicrous the largest local government area west of the Blue Mountains did not have a detoxification and rehabilitation centre.
"The closest facility is at Cowra and this is just too far away," he said.