Experts tackling drug abuse problems in Wales have drawn up a radical list of changes needed to halt the spiralling situation.

North Wales Chief Constable Richard Brunstrom led concerns among 500 delegates at a conference organised by the North Wales Drug and Alcohol Forum.

The people who inject these substances and abuse their bodies don't want to mug your granny

Chief Constable Richard Brunstrom

Delegates at the landmark conference voted to back a wholesale review of current laws, for the formal prescription of heroin trials and to scrap the existing drugs classification scheme.

The event coincides with the publication of a BBC/ICM poll for the BBC's Cracking Crime Day, which found public opinion split on the effect of reforms.

The Flintshire conference saw audience members casting their votes on reforms to the current UK drug laws.

Home Secretary David Blunkett recently announced plans to reclassify cannabis as a class C drug and other initiatives are being considered.

Eighty per cent of delegates at the event in Flintshire were in favour of conducting a thorough review of the laws, while 96% also said the current system should be replaced with a "scale of risk" for all drugs.

Sixty per cent of delegates voted in favour of prescription trials for known heroin users.

Delegates backed a controlled heroin trial

Around 10% of the auditorium were undecided about the proposal.

During his speech, Mr Brunstrom said current UK drugs policy was "nonsense on stilts" and was to blame for 50% of Wales' 10,000 hard drug users turning to crime to fund their �2m-a-week habit.

The outspoken chief constable is a strong advocate of trialling the controlled prescription of heroin.

"There is lots of evidence that proper treatment does work and it will reduce crime," he said.

"The people who inject these substances and abuse their bodies don't want to mug your granny.

Legalising some drugs

"They don't want to break into your car or burgle your house to steal your video and flog it down the pub for a tenner.

"The only way they can get it [heroin] at the moment is from the street corner from a villain with a gun in his pocket."

He has also welcomed the government's readiness to consider moving drugs laws.

However, members of the public questioned by the BBC/ICM remain undecided.

• 76% of 500 survey respondents believe children are carrying out the attacks to pay for drugs

• But 50% think prescribing heroin to users will increase crime; 40% disagree

• 32% think relaxation of cannabis laws will cause more crime while 20% expect a reduction

Other speakers at Wednesday's event included the Welsh Assembly Government's chief drugs policy adviser Dr Richard Pates and Netherlands government drugs adviser Dr Bob Keizer.

In December last year, the police chief told North Wales Police Authority the Royal Commission should investigate the possibility of legalising some drugs.

He has previously compared the UK's drug policy to that of America's alcohol prohibition in the 1920s.