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Daily news - 26th October 2022 |
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UK news
Public health cuts must be avoided, new PM told
Cuts to public health budgets will hit poorest communities the hardest, the new government is being warned | BBC, UK
Public health bosses launch plan to make London smokefree by 2030
NHS joins forces with MPs and academics to form new tobacco alliance aimed at preventing smoking | Evening Standard, UK
‘Wine o’clock’ lifestyle blamed for ‘worrying’ rise in liver cancer in last decade
[Possible paywall] Alcohol and excess weight are two of the largest risk factors for the disease which has seen a 40 per cent increase in deaths | Telegraph, UK
Electronic Cigarettes
To ask the Secretary of State for Health and Social Care, if she will make an assessment of the potential impact of UK Vaping Industry Association guidelines on (a) packaging, (b) labelling and (c) flavour names guidelines on limiting the appeal of e-cigarettes to (i) people who have never smoked and (ii) young people | They work for you, UK
List of questions for Labour Prospective Parliamentary Candidate selection meetings
Listed are a number of LCDPR formulated questions that we encourage all members who are passionate about drug use to ask in selection meetings for future MPs | Labour Campaign for Drug Policy Reform (LCDPR), UK
South West police crackdown on drug use in night-time economy
Operation Scorpion - which began in March - will shift its focus to target not just drug dealers but those using illegal substances in pubs and clubs | BBC, UK
Hundreds of cannabis plants found above shop
A "dangerous" cannabis factory with almost 500 plants inside has been uncovered above a shop in a Nottinghamshire high street | BBC, UK
International news
Germany plans to legalise recreational cannabis
Germany's coalition government has agreed on a plan to legalise recreational cannabis use among adults | BBC, UK
‘Unprecedented’: teens as young as 13 calling Quitline for help with their vaping addiction
The director of Quit Victoria, Dr Sarah White, said the calls from teens to the Victorian branch of the service “is unprecedented in our 30-year history”. | Guardian, UK
NSW government criticised in court over defence to music festival strip-searches
State to file amended defence after judge says it was illogical to find searches are reasonable and illegal | Guardian, UK
Widespread misinformation about vaping hurts public health
Quitting cigarettes is one of the hardest things to do, as many former and current smokers know from painful personal experience. Public health and politicians must do better to help smokers quit. 700,000 deaths per year in the EU should be enough of an incentive to make us rethink our current approach | Parliament Magazine, Belgium
Legally bland: Smokers sue marijuana company for not getting high enough
Two marijuana customers are lighting up a pair of California marijuana companies over the lack of THC in their product | Washington Examiner, USA
Rainbow fentanyl passed out on Halloween? Why experts say that's 'absolutely ludicrous'
A cautionary tale has developed a new twist this year, as an alarming opioid has become the latest drug feared to be lurking inside trick-or-treat hauls for Halloween | Medical Xpress, USA
School policing and disciplining may lead to student substance abuse
In new research in the journal Addictive Behaviors, public health researchers find that the prevalence of school discipline and school policing—core elements of the school-to-prison pipeline—predict subsequent school-average levels of substance use and developmental risk | Medical Xpress, USA
When it comes to addiction, Americans’ word choices are part of the problem
Who gets better medical care in the United States: “addicts,” or “people with substance use disorders”? | STAT News, USA
Future of safe consumption sites uncertain in San Francisco
The clock is now ticking for San Francisco to open up new overdose prevention facilities before The City’s only safe consumption site, the Tenderloin Center, closes at the end of December | SF Examiner, USA
The Consequences of Colorado’s Fentanyl Refelonization
In the context of the drug war, Colorado is best known for pioneering a number of high-profile reforms. In 2012, Colorado and Washington became the first two states to legalize cannabis for adult use. In 2019, Denver became the first US city to decriminalize psilocybin-containing mushrooms | Filter Magazine, USA
New report finds 171 drug-related hospitalisations per day in Australia in 2020-21
There were 62,486 drug-related hospitalisations (excluding alcohol and tobacco) among Australians in 2020-21, according to a new report released today by the Drug Trends program at the National Drug and Alcohol Research Centre (NDARC), UNSW Sydney | NDARC, Australia
Blogs, comment and opinion
“Pub-ageddon!” How alcohol licensing changes during COVID-19 lockdown were portrayed in UK news media
In March 2020, the UK Government’s response to the rising threat of the COVID-19 pandemic included the closure of all pubs, bars, and restaurants. Meanwhile, shops that sell alcohol, such as supermarkets and off-licences, were designated ‘essential services’ and remained open | IAS blog, UK
Is the Psychedelic Bubble About to Burst? Examining The Mainstreaming Of Psychedelic-Assisted Therapy
Many psychological and neurological disorders are inadequately addressed by existing drugs. Treatment resistance affects around 20-60% of patients with a psychiatric disorder, and 33% of those suffering from a neurological condition, such as epilepsy. Drug resistance can have a profound detrimental effect on patients and their families, leaving them with no option but to seek alternative treatments | Volteface, UK
#SmokingAndMentalHealth conversations: NIHR 3 schools webinar
Over fifty people participated in a webinar, funded by National Institute for Health Research “Three Schools” (Primary Care, Public Health and Social Care) on Wednesday 28th September 2022. The Mental Elf had done all the hard work setting up the webinar and Tom Bailey, artist, provided illustrations throughout the morning | Mental Elf blog, UK