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Daily news - 2nd April 2025 |
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UK news
Big Tobacco resorts to old tricks in campaign against UK’s historic Tobacco and Vapes Bill
New research reveals the tobacco industry is still fiercely defending legislation aimed at creating a smoke-free generation | University of Bath, UK
Disclosure: one more fix - iPlayer
Will a new centre where people can inject illegal drugs under medical supervision actually save lives? Reporter Chris Clements gains unprecedented access to the setting-up of the UK’s first drug consumption room. He meets the people behind it, locals who are against it and those it aims to help | BBC, UK
Scotcast - Our Drug Problem - video
Martin Geissler and Laura Miller hear what the BBC’s Chris Clements has learned from a decade of reporting on drug misuse | BBC, UK
Pregnant smokers get support to save babies' lives
Frimley Health Foundation Trust (FHFT) has recruited three specialist maternity tobacco dependency advisors (MTDAs) to help reduce smoking in pregnancy and beyond | BBC, UK
New independent research reveals Pubwatch schemes are key to tackling disorder and creating safer drinking environments
Pubwatch schemes are key to reducing alcohol-related crime and improving the safety of the evening economy, a new independent study commissioned by voluntary organisation National Pubwatch (NPW) has confirmed. The research, conducted by Leeds Beckett University and supported with funding from JD Wetherspoon and Diageo, has shown that 86% of licensees, staff, police and those working within organisations such as local authorities, believe that Pubwatches help to create safer drinking environments | National Pub Watch, UK
Forward connecting more with RECONNECT
In 2021, The Forward Trust were given an opportunity to deliver NHS RECONNECT services across the Norfolk & Suffolk. Soon after, this also included Essex | Forward Trust, UK
A new drug and alcohol service launches in Bristol
A new integrated drug and alcohol service that will expand the reach of support available to residents across Bristol launched on 1st April. Health and social care provider, Turning Point, has been awarded the contract by Bristol City Council to lead Horizons: Bristol’s Drug & Alcohol Partnership in partnership with Bristol Drugs Project (BDP) and seven other local organisations: The Nelson Trust, Hawkspring, One 25, Southmead Development Trust, Southmead Project, Wellspring Settlement, and Release | DDN, UK
Low Alcohol Drinks: Labelling and Marketing
To ask the Secretary of State for Environment, Food and Rural Affairs, pursuant to the Answer of 17 March 2025 to Question 37074 on Low Alcohol Drinks, if he will have discussions with the Secretary of State for Health and Social Care on the potential merits of amending the marketing and labelling rules for the alcohol-free drinks to increase it from 0.05% to 0.5% ABV | They work for you, UK
Family who sold cannabis baked goods to pay £50k
Twin brothers and their mother who were convicted of making cannabis baked goods have been ordered to pay more than £50,000 by a court | BBC, UK
£1m of cocaine found hidden in electric wheelchair
Cocaine with a street value of almost £1m was found stashed in an electric wheelchair at Manchester Airport after a flight from Barbados. Border Force officers scanned the wheelchair and found it contained 11 packages, weighing 12kg (26.4lbs) on Sunday 30 March | BBC, UK
International news
How to help people with addictions on the streets? These Oregon programs have solutions
The state has one of the highest US rates of substance use disorders and ranks last for access to treatment. These initiatives are changing what rehab looks like | Guardian, UK
Suspects of Super Bowl reporter’s death allegedly planned drug-and-steal schemes for years
Sources say Danette Colbert and Rickey White’s texts show coordination to incapacitate victims and take their money | Guardian, UK
Synthetic Opioid and Stimulant Co-Involved Overdose Deaths by Occupation and Industry — United States, 2022
In this exploratory analysis of multiple cause of death data from 2022, occupations and industries with higher percentages of psychostimulant involvement in synthetic opioid overdose deaths tended to be physically demanding, whereas those with higher percentages of cocaine involvement tended to be less so | CDC, USA
Effective interventions and policies to reduce tobacco-caused harm
Earlier this year, the U.S. Food and Drug Administration (FDA) proposed a new rule to limit nicotine in cigarettes and certain other tobacco products, like cigars and pipe tobacco, bringing nicotine down to minimal or nonaddictive levels. If finalized, this change would be a major step in addressing the public health concerns of smoking and tobacco use in the United States | Medical Xpress, USA
Unintentional drug overdoses take a disproportionate toll across the US, study finds
A recent study from Columbia University's Mailman School of Public Health reveals significant racial and sex disparities in drug overdose mortality rates. The research found that both Black men and Black women have been disproportionately impacted by overdose deaths, with their mortality rates rising sharply compared to their white counterparts | Medical Xpress, USA
Congress, Trucking Industry Critique Tests for Marijuana-Impaired Driving
Two United States House committees briefly addressed the issue of marijuana-impaired driving as part of broader transportation-related hearings in late March. During testimony, a representative of the trucking industry called for wider use of hair follicle drug testing, while the chair of the National Transportation Safety Board (NTSB) recommended better education for drivers | Filter Magazine, USA
What Will Sara Carter of Fox News Bring as “Drug Czar”?
On March 28, President Donald Trump announced Sara Carter as his pick for “drug czar.” Carter, who will need to be confirmed by the Senate, has a background as a journalist and Fox News contributor, with no direct drug policy or public health experience | Filter Magazine, USA
Psilocybin Dispensaries and Online Health Claims in Canada
In this cross-sectional study of all psilocybin dispensaries operating in Canada, we identified 57 dispensaries and 15 of Canada’s 42 major urban cities contained 1 or more psilocybin dispensaries. Most dispensaries had a website that offered online sales while making unsubstantiated health claims and important omissions of risk | JAMA Network Open, USA
Tackling alcohol and other drugs in professional sport: A balanced approach
At 360Edge, we recently supported a major professional sporting organisation in revising their illicit drug policy and developing a model of care to better manage alcohol and illicit drug related issues among players. Our work aimed to balance accountability with player wellbeing while aligning with best practice approaches | 360Edge, Australia
Blogs, comment and opinion
Trends in the alcohol-free and low-alcohol drinks market in the UK
The previous UK Government's green paper, 'Advancing our health: prevention in the 2020s', committed to working with alcohol producers and retailers to encourage people who drink above low-risk levels (those who drink no more than 14 units of alcohol per week, spread over three or more days) to switch to alcohol-free and low-alcohol (no/lo) alternatives, and to significantly increase the availability of these drinks by 2025. In the absence of a new prevention strategy, this remains a significant part of the current government's alcohol policy. To see how well these plans are working we conducted a study exploring trends in the alcohol-free and low-alcohol drinks market in the UK | SARG blog, UK
Celebrating Community Garden Week at The Forward Trust
As the first week of April marks Community Garden Week (April 1st – April 7th), I am excited to celebrate the power of gardening in transforming lives, fostering well-being, and strengthening our connection to nature. This annual event shines a spotlight on community gardens and their role in bringing people together to cultivate not just plants, but also a sense of purpose, peace, and sustainability | Forward Trust blog, UK
Gone but not forgotten: Why was the Northern Territory’s Minimum Unit Price removed?
Australia’s Northern Territory has removed its Minimum Unit Price (MUP) for alcohol as of the first of March. The removal of the MUP was an election promise of the incoming Country Liberal Party (CLP), who had opposed the introduction of the policy in 2018 by the Territory Labor Party. Party politics no doubt played a major role in the choice to remove the policy | IAS blog, UK
Vin Mariani: From Health Tonic to Moral Panic
Instead of a wine that makes you sleepy, imagine one that could keep you up and talking all night. Imagine again that this wine, far from being bad for you, was in fact a health tonic with innumerable and immediate benefits. These were claims of the producers of Vin Mariani, a French drink that, in the late 19th century, sat on the desks of popes, writers, and even royalty. What was its secret and why, since it was so popular, have we not all heard of it? The answer lies in its secret ingredient: Peruvian coca, the Andean plant from which cocaine is produced | Talking Drugs, UK
New report reveals successes and limitations of medications for opioid use disorder in New York state prisons
A new report from a New York prison oversight agency offers insights about the need for, and challenges of, implementing medication-assisted treatment in prisons | Prison Policy Initiative, USA
Cannabis retail expansion in Canada came with only a small uptick in the number of consumers
Ever since recreational cannabis was legalized across Canada in 2018, researchers have been studying what that decision changed for Canadians. We’ve learned, for example, that some patients immediately left the medical cannabis system, presumably to use recreational products instead. Conversely, legalization appeared to have no effect on Canadian alcohol sales. We’ve similarly seen how cannabis retailing has evolved since it became legal | Conversation, Canada