Drug rooms plan for crack smokers in Paris

Four new drug consumption rooms, and one mobile 'room' on a bus could be created for smokers of crack cocaine in Paris, according to the city's deputy mayor with responsibility for health.

The idea is based on the model of 'shooting rooms' for intravenous drug users. But current laws do not allow crack smokers to use these rooms - though users in Paris and Strasbourg have been permitted to sidestep the rules by injecting themselves with a needle before smoking.

"We have to change the law. Crack use is alarming in north-east Paris," deputy mayor Anne Souyris told France Bleu Paris.

It is believed up to 500 users in the capital are so addicted to the drug - the most addictive form of cocaine - that they are unable to seek help, so Anne Souyris proposed the bus idea to give them a same environment to inhale, while also providing medical check-ups, as well as health and social advice.

Users gather mostly at so-called "colline du crack" (Crack Hill), and on some subway lines. A total 17 police raids have taken place on "colline du crack" alone - but they have failed to cut down on the use and trafficking of the drug in the capital.