After the nine-day wonder concerning the Home Secretary's son and claims of drug dealing, the UK's new 'drugs czar' is taking up his post.

Former Chief Constable Keith Hellawell's job is to help slow the use of drugs by young people, deal with the problems of drug use and to reduce their flow into the UK.

In his efforts to fight the country's growing drugs problem, he will be working with everyone from education departments to Customs and Excise and prisons.

'Drug czar' appointment was a Labour election pledge

He has already warned that he is firmly opposed to legalising or decriminalising narcotics.

Drugs misuse in Britain is continuing to grow, and the UK anti-drugs co-ordinator, better known as the drugs czar, was one of Labour's big election ideas.

Mr Hellawell's first job will be to assess whether the current anti-drugs budget is being spent wisely.

He will not have any new money to spend, and critics say his appointment is cosmetic. But he will have direct access to the Prime Minister, and will report his recommendations for action in April.

Mr Hellawell hopes to reduce flow of drugs into Britain

Mr Hellawell, who takes up his post on Monday, warns against seeking 'simplistic' answers to the problem of drugs.

"Young people are influenced by many things. They're not silly. People engage them as if they were an alien breed," he says.

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