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Daily news - 10th October 2022 |
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UK news
North-South divide in opioid and painkiller prescribing with high use in England's most deprived areas
A North-South divide over the prescription of high dose opioids and other painkillers has been revealed by Sky News research | Sky News, UK
As Biden pardons thousands for marijuana possession – Braverman moves to make it a Class A drug
Suella Braverman is considering upgrading cannabis to a class A drug, according to reports in the Times. [Subscription required] | London Economic, UK
E-cigarettes (Teenagers)
To ask the First Minister what steps the Scottish Government is taking to curb the reported sharp rise in e-cigarette use among teenagers | They work for you, UK
Alcoholic Drinks: Misuse
To ask the Secretary of State for Health and Social Care, what recent assessment he has made of the extent of alcohol-related harm, and what estimate he has made of the cost to the NHS resulting from alcohol-related harm in each of the last three years for which figures are available | They work for you, UK
Ex-prisoner turned paddleboarder David Haze breaks records
David Haze, 37, from Bournemouth, was a city trader in London who turned to a life of crime and cocaine after losing his job. But he later turned his life around by enrolling on a prison reform programme | BBC, UK
Drugs Policy: High time for reform - podcast
Most experts agree that decriminalisation of drug possession and more robust social policy are the answer to drug-related harms. In December 2021 the government published a 10-year plan to tackle drug-related crime in the UK, aiming to cut supply and improve treatment options. But a new white paper building on this plan promises | Transform Justice, UK
The Science of Psychedelics with Prof David Nutt
Wed, 26 October 2022, 18:30 – 20:30 BST. The godfather of neuropsychopharmacology, Prof David Nutt, will be at University of York in-person talking about how and why, in recent years, psychedelics have begun to recapture the attention of the scientific community | Drug Science, UK
Nottinghamshire dealers imitate snack brands to sell cannabis
Drug dealers are creating packaging imitating well-known snack brands to get young people to take cannabis, police have warned | BBC, UK
Doctor who abused position for drugs gets suspended sentence
Dr Peter Sabherwal, 57, whose address was given as Campbell Surgery in Quarry Road, Dungannon, admitted seven counts of possessing Diazepam on various dates between 2014 and 2015 | BBC, UK
HMS Montrose: Royal Navy seizes drugs worth £15m in Arabian Sea
Hundreds of kilograms of crystal methamphetamine were recovered from the dhow by the crew of HMS Montrose in a six-hour operation | BBC, UK
International news
What you need to know about 3 MMC, the party drug of the moment
Last year, the drug was found in a load of the UK’s pill supply. Now, 3-MMC has been doing the rounds in the Berlin party scene. But what actually is it? | The Face, UK
Will the Biden administration overhaul US cannabis policy?
US cannabis policy has been thrust to the fore after President Joe Biden issued a blanket pardon for Americans federally convicted of possessing small amounts of the drug | BBC, UK
Gov Greg Abbott says no to pardons for marijuana offenders in Texas
A spokeswoman for the Texas governor says they will not be taking advice on criminal justice from the White House | Independent, UK
Victorian Greens push for cannabis to be legalised, taxed similarly to alcohol
Plan would see a 30% tax imposed, which analysis suggests will add $1.21bn in revenue over a decade | Guardian, UK
Teenagers Keep Vaping Despite Crackdowns on E-Cigarettes
[Free registration required] While use among youths has fallen since the peaks of 2018-19, resumption of in-school classes this year shows students still have access to flavored, disposable vapes | NYTimes, USA
A Proclamation on Granting Pardon for the Offense of Simple Possession of Marijuana
Acting pursuant to the grant of authority in Article II, Section 2, of the Constitution of the United States, I, Joseph R. Biden Jr., do hereby grant a full, complete, and unconditional pardon to (1) all current United States citizens and lawful permanent residents who committed the offense of simple possession of marijuana in violation of the Controlled Substances Act... | The White House, USA
Many Americans arrested for marijuana won't find relief under Biden's pardon plan
President Joe Biden’s announcement Thursday that he would pardon federal convictions for simple possession of marijuana could help more than 6,500 people obtain employment or other opportunities, but it’ll do little for most people incarcerated for marijuana | USA Today, USA
“The Great Meltdown”: In Prisons, a Drug War Without Harm Reduction
Those of us incarcerated by the Georgia Department of Corrections got used to the drones a while ago. They’ve been dropping in drugs and other contraband for years, and still do. But in the early days of the pandemic they were almost redundant | Filter Magazine, USA
How MDMA resensitizes the brain
Gül Dölen explains how psychedelics restore the brain’s capacity for plasticity, which fades with age, and make possible new mental-health therapies | Nature, USA
Why can Queenslanders with medicinal cannabis prescriptions be charged for drug possession?
A Queensland woman who faced court on drug charges despite having a prescription for medicinal cannabis wants other unsuspecting users to be aware of the strict laws around carrying the substance | abc.net.au, Australia
University wants ban on harmful ads to children - gambling, alcohol, junk food
On an average day, New Zealand children are exposed to seven gambling advertisements, four and a half alcohol ads and 27 junk food ads | NZ Herald, New Zealand
Blogs, comment and opinion
Cannabis corporates should be taxed to fund mental health programmes
Mental health is the state of mental well-being that contributes to individual and population health. This state of mental well-being sustains national output and labour force productivity. But governments around the world haven’t been investing resources into addressing mental ill-health. This is despite acknowledging that economics and mental health are intertwined | Conversation, UK
Today we begin to right these wrongs’ – US President Joe Biden announces HISTORIC cannabis reforms
US President Joe Biden has officially announced that all prior federal offences of cannabis possession are to be pardoned, urging state governors and legislators to do the same | Volteface, UK
Biden now knows marijuana laws are racist. It’s time to take this policy further
If he wants to really be revolutionary, he could follow the lead of Beto O’Rourke | Independent voices, UK
Opinion: What ‘fancy a pint?’ really means
One of the recurring sketches on “The Fast Show” would begin with a situation that was stressful, boring, uncomfortable, awkward – anything where the prospect of remaining there becomes increasingly unbearable. As the pressure built, cast member and writer Paul Whitehouse would eventually look off-camera and ask, “Anyone fancy a pint?” | CNN, USA