Daily news - 6th December 2021 |
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UK news
Government to overhaul drug policy to focus on getting users healthcare
The government will announce a new drugs strategy on Monday overhauling the drug recovery and treatment system, the BBC has learned | BBC, UK
County lines: Government pledges to dismantle 2,000 gangs in drug policy overhaul
The government is pledging to dismantle 2,000 county lines gangs as part of a drugs policy overhaul. The £300m commitment is one proposal in the new 10-year drug strategy for England and Wales | BBC, UK
Users of class A drugs in UK face losing passports, say reports of proposals
Boris Johnson expected to launch 10-year plan this week to tackle drug-related crime | Guardian, UK
'Stop saying junkie' plea to end addiction stigma
A national campaign calling for drug and alcohol problems to be treated as a health condition has been launched | BBC, UK
Parliament drug use claims to be raised with police this week
House of Commons Speaker Sir Lindsay Hoyle has promised to raise allegations of drug use in Parliament with the Metropolitan Police this week | BBC, UK
Ex-addict says charity treatment in Dudley 'keys to new life'
A recovering heroin addict says a new, slow-release drug treatment is like being "given the keys to a new life" | BBC, UK
Eccleshall: Former alcoholic targets 70 triathlons in 70 days
Andy Stone, from Eccleshall, in Staffordshire, has been sober for seven years and wanted to see what he was "capable of" | BBC, UK
Bereaved father says son needed safe drug space
A father whose son died from a drug overdose said he would still be alive if he had had "the protection" of a safe space to take them | BBC, UK
Watch: The government blocked Bristol’s plans for tackling drug overdoses. This Scottish activist took matters into his own hands
Cranstoun Project Lead Peter Krykant set up his own safe consumption room in a van in Glasgow. The idea has support in Bristol, so what will happen next? | Bristol Cable, UK
Cigarette Stick Health Warnings Bill [HL] - Second Reading
This Bill extends the logic of health warnings on cigarette packs to the cigarettes themselves. If implemented, it would require both cigarettes and cigarette papers to display health warnings such as “Smoking Kills” or “Smoking Causes Cancer”. | They Work for you, UK
Drugs: Misuse
To ask the Secretary of State for Health and Social Care, what assessment he has made of the adequacy of support available for prescription medication for people addicted to drugs who wish to withdraw | They work for you, UK
Cannabis: Medical Treatments
To ask the Secretary of State for Health and Social Care, what recent comparative assessment he has made of the risks of prescribing (a) medicinal cannabis and (b) treatments for drug addiction including methadone and diamorphine; and for what reasons prescription of medical cannabis is required to be prescribed by clinicians listed on the Specialist Register of the General Medical Council | They work for you, UK
Opiates: North East
To ask the Secretary of State for Health and Social Care, what estimate he has made of the number of opioid-related deaths in the North East in each of the last five years | They work for you, UK
Heroin Seizures
To ask the Scottish Government what its response is to reports that the amount of heroin seized by Police Scotland has increased by more than 400 per cent since 2016-17 | They work for you, UK
Are you dreaming of a booze-free Christmas? Join the (soda) club
The market in no- and low-alcohol drinks is booming in the UK as more people swap the festive hangover for mindful drinking | Guardian, UK
London’s first alcohol-free off-licence
13 December 2021 to 30 January 2022. This December, Club Soda is opening the doors of London’s first alcohol-free off-licence | Club Soda, UK
Brain & Mind Made Virtual
Wed, 15 December 2021, 18:00 – 19:30 GMT. The godfather of neuropsychopharmacology is back... and he's written a new book. Get a signed copy and join us for a Q&A w/ Prof David Nutt! | Drug Science, UK
Wakefield Waterstones raises child safety fear store alcohol application
A book shop has voiced fears for the safety of children visiting its Wakefield branch if a nearby store is given the go-ahead to sell alcohol | BBC, UK
Greater Manchester men jailed over £61m drugs conspiracy
Two men have been jailed for their part in a £61m drugs ring after a package from Belgium was intercepted on its way to Greater Manchester | BBC, UK
Carlisle cannabis farm: Men jailed over drugs found in former nightclub
Two illegal immigrants have been jailed for their part in a £1.6m cannabis factory set up in a former nightclub | BBC, UK
Salford drug dealer who hid £190k in fruit machine jailed
A drug dealer who hid £190,000 in cash and cocaine in a fruit machine named Cops 'N' Robbers has been jailed | BBC, UK
International news
The health impact of smokeless tobacco products [SLT]: a systematic review
[Open access] We analysed published literature on the health outcomes from SLT use between 01/01/2015 to 01/02/2020, following Preferred Reporting Items for Systematic Reviews and Meta-Analyses (PRISMA) protocol using PubMed, Embase, Scopus, and Google Scholar | Harm Reduction Journal, UK
AOC co-sponsors bipartisan bill to help expunge cannabis convictions
Legislation from New York congresswoman and Ohio Republican would help states erase criminal records for weed-related offenses | Independent, UK
Heroin dogs of Kabul: Shocking photos show homeless Afghan men giving Class A drug to stray mutts so that they stick with them to keep them warm during bitter winter
One of the homeless men explains that giving heroin to the stray dogs – which appear to be suffering the same effects of addiction as you would see in humans – means they return each night and provide both body heat and comfort to the addicts | Mail Online, UK
Cheaper crack cocaine supplies in cities 'sees people travel from rural areas to buy the drug'
Tony Duffin of the Ana Liffey Drug Project believes a drop in crack cocaine cost is directly linked to increased supply | Journal, Ireland
WATCH: ‘Drug markets in Ireland and Scotland: Problems and possible solutions?’
Composed of practitioners and former law enforcement officers from Ireland and Scotland; this panel discussion took place on 2nd December 2021 as part of the 24-hour conference on global organized crime 2021 | Ana Lifey Drug Project, Ireland
EMCDDA webinar: Drug-related deaths in Europe, current challenges and implications for responses
08 DEC 2021. This webinar is linked to the latest bundle of EMCDDA miniguides which focus on responding to drug-related harms. It aims to provide an insight into the current situation regarding drug-related deaths in Europe and responses to them. Speakers will briefly present the situations they face and discuss policies and responses | EMCDDA, Portugal
Marijuana, Opioid, and Alcohol Use Among Pregnant and Postpartum Individuals Living With HIV in the US
In this cohort study including 2310 pregnant and postpartum individuals living with HIV from the Surveillance Monitoring for Antiretroviral Toxicities (SMARTT) study, use of marijuana increased from 2007 to 2019 and was more frequent in locations with medical marijuana legalization. Prevalence of alcohol and opioid use did not change over that time | JAMA Network, USA
Adverse Effects Linked to Next Generation Opioids Reported in Patients Presenting to Emergency Departments After Suspected Opioid Overdose
he objective of this announcement is to notify public health and safety, clinicians, law enforcement, first responders, medical examiners and coroners, forensic and clinical laboratory personnel, and all other related communities about new information surrounding new generation synthetic opioids in clinical settings after suspected opioid overdoses and presentation to emergency departments, including: metonitazene, N-piperidinyl etonitazene, isotonitazene, and brorphine | NPS Discovery, USA
China’s Decision to Regulate Vaping Products Has Global Implications
China revealed on November 26 that it would officially regulate vaping products under its tobacco monopoly law | Filter Magazine, USA
National Drug-User Union Emphasizes Tobacco Harm Reduction
Cigarette smoking among people who use illicit drugs doesn’t receive much attention, despite the fact that this population has some of the highest smoking rates. That’s why it’s particularly important that the Urban Survivors Union (USU), a national drug-user union, is hosting a public, online meeting to discuss tobacco harm reduction | Filter Magazine, USA
Trends in drug-related-hospitalisations in Australia, 2019-20
There were 62,757 drug-related hospitalisations (excluding alcohol and tobacco) among Australians in 2019-20, equivalent to 0.56% of all hospitalisations in Australia | NDARC, Australia
An opioid reversal program has saved dozens of Canberrans. Now there are calls to roll it out to families across Australia
David Baxter has witnessed the effects of overdose firsthand | abc.net.au, Australia
Drug Drivers To Lose Their Licence Under New SA Legislation: As police crackdown on dangerous drivers
South Australians will now face much harsher penalties for dangerous or drug driving offences | Hit, Australia
Roadside saliva tests not a good indicator of how stoned a drug driver is
Anti-drug-driving programs using saliva-based tests for tetrahydrocannabinol (THC), the active compound in cannabis, are in use by police across the country | The Age, Australia
Blogs, comment and opinion
Cranstoun responds to The Telegraph article
Cranstoun is a social justice charity empowering people and empowering change working across the areas of substance use, criminal justice, domestic abuse, housing, and young people. Prison is a notoriously difficult and challenging environment. Those entering prison estates very often bring with them a number of acute vulnerabilities including addiction, poor mental health and a history of trauma | Cranstoun, UK
Treatment Together: Drug Rehabilitation Models Without Separation
A model that works with familial responsibilities to address drug and alcohol addiction proves to be successful, but struggles amidst defunding and austerity for treatment services | Talking Drugs, UK
Did a recovery strategy cause drug deaths?
There’s a narrative that’s been around for a while, but it’s been gaining ground in the last few months. This last couple of months alone, it’s been in the ether, permeating social media conversations and even appeared in an academic paper. The issue relates to recovery-oriented drug policies and the tone is negative | Recovery Review blog, UK
I was told the 12 steps would cure my addiction. Why did I end up feeling more broken?
In this quasi-religious programme, ‘working the steps’ is the remedy for any problem, but for me the cracks soon started to show | Guardian, UK
Great Expectations
Brexit has given the United Kingdom freedom to expand its progressive tobacco harm reduction approach | Tobacco Reporter, UK
Best wishes for the future
A message from our outgoing CEO James Nicholls. On my final day at Transform, I just wanted to say what a privilege it has been to lead this organisation over the last three years. I have been fortunate not only to be working in a vital area of policy reform, but to lead a wonderful staff team with the support of a dedicated and committed board | Transform blog, UK
Transformers Versus Abolitionists
In November, two major treaties had their Conference of the Parties (COP) meetings. COP26 of the U.N. Framework Convention on Climate Change (UNFCCC) was held in Glasgow, and COP9 of the WHO Framework Convention on Tobacco Control (FCTC) was held online. Both aim to address a globally significant problem, and both aim to achieve radical transformations in the markets for energy and tobacco, respectively | Tobacco Reporter blog, UK
Habitual cocaine use by football fans is a problem the sport needs to face
[Limited number of free articles per week] Class A drugs have become normalised among a section of supporters as the independent review into Wembley chaos demonstrates | Telegraph, UK
Recovery and “The Continuum of Care”
When Mrs. Marty Mann announced the formation of the National Committee for Education on Alcoholism in 1944, she called upon local communities to establish a local alcoholism information center, a hospital-based detoxification unit, a clinic for the diagnosis and treatment of alcoholism, and “rest centers” for the long-term care of alcoholics | William L White papers, USA
Congress Must Prioritize Comprehensive Marijuana Reform Over Quick Fix that Prioritizes Big Cannabis Businesses at the Expense of People Who Have Been Harmed by Prohibition
In response to news that Congress could attempt to move the SAFE Banking Act (H.R.1996) through the National Defense Authorization Act (NDAA), instead of prioritizing comprehensive marijuana reform, Kassandra Frederique, Executive Director of the Drug Policy Alliance released this statement | DPA, USA
“Contested Cannabis: A History of Marijuana in Wisconsin and the Wider World”—Digital Exhibit and Online Roundtable Discussion
Drawing upon AIHP historical collections as well collections at the Wisconsin Historical Society, the exhibit uses objects and items—including children’s anti-drug coloring books, pro-marijuana festival posters, archived World War One-era medicinal cannabis correspondence, and other artifacts and texts—to investigate and analyze the history of cannabis, marijuana, and hemp in the state of Wisconsin and in the United States | Points blog, USA
Making the tobacco industry pay for cigarette litter could stop 4.5 billion butts polluting the Australian environment
Cigarette butts with filters are the most commonly littered item worldwide, with a staggering 4.5 trillion of them tossed into the environment each year. This is a huge problem; many end up on beaches and in the ocean, and the tar from burnt tobacco in the filter can be toxic to wildlife | Conversation, Australia