Daily news - 9th January 2020

UK news

Class A drug seizures in England and Wales up 13% on previous year

Huge haul includes largest quantity of cocaine seized since records began in 1973 | Guardian, UK [Yesterday's statistics update here]

Government confirms extra support for Troubled Families to succeed

Up to £165 million new funding to help families get their lives back on track announced | Ministry of Housing, Communities & Local Government and The Rt Hon Robert Jenrick MP, UK

Effectiveness Bank: Free course on alcohol treatment research starts soon

Two weeks from today we will deliver the first instalment of the 2020/21 refresh of the Alcohol Treatment Matrix, mapping the world of alcohol treatment and brief intervention research. Instalments from the last course remain available for dip into by clicking on cells in the matrix. Join mailing list to be sure of receiving new course instalments directly | Drug and Alcohol Findings, UK

Naloxone

Does the Met equip police officers with Naloxone? If so, when did this start, how many officers, and how many times has it been used? If not, are there any plans to equip officers with Naloxone and if so, when? | They work for you, UK

Fifth of drinkers exceed the government’s weekly recommended alcohol limit every week

According to the poll, which was commissioned by Yorkshire Cancer Research, at least one in 10 said they drank every single day. However, at least half said they had attempted to cut down during the past five years | Independent, UK

Creating a Healthy Alcohol Culture in the Legal Profession Guidance for Firms and Individuals (PDF)

This guidance on creating a healthy alcohol culture in the legal profession, however, is designed to specifically address how to create a healthy culture around alcohol in the legal profession and equip organisations to foster mindful drinking attitudes | The Law Society, UK

Health minister urged to fund more drug rehab beds amid deaths crisis

Joe FitzPatrick also refuses to put pressure on Lord Advocate to give immunity from prosecution to drug facility workers | Daily Record, UK

WEDINOS latest results

New results added to the Wedinos database | WEDINOS, UK

Case of MS patient accused of growing and possessing cannabis is dropped

The criminal case against an MS sufferer for growing cannabis to treat her illness has been abandoned by the Crown Prosecution Service on public interest grounds | Evening Standard, UK

The Volteface Podcast#18 Christmas Special…Our year in review

This month the Volteface directors, Liz McCulloch and Paul North, reflect on the year gone by and what it has meant for drug policy. We’ve had MPs investigate the ‘Canadian experiment’, a newspaper campaign on cannabis legalisation, the exposure of drug dealing on social media and cross-party support for drug reform | Volte Face, UK

Pills, Powder, and Smoke: Inside the Bloody War on Drugs - free event

Mon, 3 February 2020, 18:00 – 20:00 GMT. Queen Mary University of London. Author Antony Lowenstein takes part in a conversation for the award winning Stop and Search podcast, discussing the bloody war on drugs | Stop and Search Podcast in association with LEAP UK, UK

Queers Without Beers | Dry January - free event

Adelina Yard , Queen Quay, Welsh Back , Bristol , BS1 4SL. 27th January, 2020 at 7:00pm. Launched in November last year, Queers Without Beersis Bristol's new alcohol-free LGBTQI+ social night, which have been entertaining queers of all persuasions across London and Manchester for the past few years | BDP, UK

Sunderland gambling clinic opens doors to North East addicts

The facility in Sunderland is run by the Northern Gambling Service and funded by the NHS and the charity GambleAware | BBC, UK

'I've lost my eldest son... for £10 and an iPhone'

In the early hours of 1 February 2019, Charlotte Marshall received a phone call that would change her life | BBC, UK

International news

Fewer Irish children are smoking and drinking, new study suggests

There has been an increase in the number of children reporting never having had an alcoholic drink or smoking, a new study shows. Minister for Health Simon Harris TD and Minister for Health Promotion, Catherine Byrne TD will launch the Health Behaviours in School-aged Children (HBSC) 2018 Study on Thursday | ITV, UK

Britain’s “Most Prolific” Rapist Spurs Misguided GHB Crackdown

The UK is moving towards a crackdown on GHB and GBL—two highly similar depressants, popular in clubs and the chemsex scene, both commonly referred to as “G”—in the wake of the high-profile serial rape conviction of a man who drugged his victims | Filter Magazine, USA

Tariffs on European wine will hurt everyone but their intended targets

Think about the last glass of wine you ordered in a restaurant—a complex Burgundy, for instance, or a glass of celebratory Prosecco. Now, consider the people who got it to you | Quartz, USA

Researchers Surprised by High Levels of Alcohol Consumption among Cancer Survivors

First-ever large study on drinking habits of cancer survivors—published in JNCCN—finds more than a third exceed moderate drinking levels, one in five engage in binge drinking | NCCN, USA

The DRAM, Vol. 16(1) - How do self-affirmation and graphic health warnings on beer cans influence beliefs about drinking?

Despite large-scale public health campaigns, diseases related to alcohol are still leading causes of death in the US | BASIS, USA

This drug could save their lives, but less than 2% of them get it

Despite naloxone recommendations for people who take high-dose opioids, or who have a history of opioid problems, study finds those at risk aren't getting overdose rescue drug | EurekAlert, USA

Study examines opioid involvement in US drug overdoses

Fatal overdoses involving stimulants (cocaine and other psychostimulants, primarily methamphetamine) have been increasing over the past few years. A recent analysis published in Addiction found that in 2016, 27% of overdose visits to U.S. emergency departments involving cocaine and 14% involving psychostimulants also involved an opioid | Medical Xpress, USA

Some parents are turning to medical marijuana to treat ADHD instead of Adderall

Some parents of children with attention deficit hyperactivity disorder (ADHD) have grown wary of Ritalin and Adderall, common treatments for the condition, because of the stimulants' side effects and potential for long-term abuse. Now they're turning to doctors who will prescribe medical marijuana instead | Business Insider, USA

Frequently cited claim that e-cigarettes are '95% safer' is misleading and outdated

The frequently cited claim that e-cigarettes are "95% less risky" or "95% less harmful" than combustible cigarettes is outdated, misleading and invalid -- and should no longer be made in discussions on the dangers of vaping, according to an editorial published today in the American Journal of Public Health by six leading experts on e-cigarettes and public health | News Medical, USA

Examining vaping particle size and deposition

E-cigarette use is rising, particularly among young adults and teens. Recent illnesses and deaths attributed to vaping have caused intense scrutiny of the chemicals in e-liquids and vapor, but little is known about the size of vaping particles and their deposition patterns in human airways | EurekAlert, USA

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