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Daily news - 4th August 2025 |
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UK news
Health board warning as lethal opioids infiltrate market
NHS Ayrshire and Arran’s public health department has urged drug users to "be cautious" | Herald, UK
Contaminated cocaine warning as A&E admissions rise
Health bodies on the Isle of Man have raised the alarm about a "contaminated or high-potency" batch of cocaine after a spike in hospital admissions. The alert follows a significant increase in the number of people attending the emergency department at Noble's Hospital, Public Health Isle of Man said | BBC, UK
'Shocking' link between drug use and domestic abuse
More than 75% of those arrested for violent offences against women and girls in Dorset had cocaine or heroin in their system – a pilot project has found | BBC, UK
These medications could save thousands of lives – but doctors aren’t prescribing them
While it was once hoped that cytisine would become the ‘aspirin of smoking cessation drugs’, it is shockingly underused | Independent, UK
Life changing scheme rolls out across the West Midlands
A new scheme to stop crime and save lives is being rolled out across the West Midlands. Offending 2 Recovery aims to stop crime, end addiction and transform lives. Its focus is on drug users who fund their addiction by stealing from shops. It is one of the key elements in our work to make town centres safer this summer and beyond | West Midlands Police, UK
A systematic review of reviews on comprehensive community initiatives to prevent or reduce alcohol and other drug harms
Comprehensive community initiatives (CCI) aimed at reducing or preventing alcohol or other drug harms incorporate multiple initiatives delivered to whole communities to effect community-level change. CCIs have gained in popularity and have been subject to extensive research; however, CCIs comprise multiple initiatives and evidence for effectiveness by substance type has been mixed. This umbrella review aimed to synthesise published information to describe the combination of CCIs with the most consistent evidence for impact for each substance type | Addiction, UK
How can occupational therapy support people with complex needs?
As an occupational therapist working within our Coventry Drug and Alcohol Service, Jess Bhikha has seen how occupational therapy can be used to offer a person-centred approach to individuals with complex needs. She has embedded these practices within our service offering, with significant success | Change Grow Live, UK
Scotland's drugs minister Maree Todd opens up about her parents' alcoholism and time with AA
Maree Todd MSP has opened up about her parents’ struggle with alcohol in the hope that their sobriety can help others | Scotsman, UK
I wallowed in booze for four decades. Here’s what five sober years have taught me
To give up drinking once seemed unthinkable – and when I finally made the leap, it didn’t go quite as expected | Guardian, UK
The Manifesto Sessions: Drug Overdose Good Samaritan Act
Mon, 01 Sept, 14:00 - 15:00 BST. This webinar will focus on the Drug Overdose Good Samaritan Act. As part of our ‘Setting the blueprint for a more equal and prosperous Wales for people who use substances’, we are asking for Wales to become the first country in Europe, and follow Canada's lead, and many states in the US, in implementing such legislation that can provide legal protection for individuals who experience or witness a suspected drug-related overdose | Barod, UK
BBC launches probe into Strictly 'drug use' - report
The BBC has launched an investigation into alleged drug use by two Strictly Come Dancing stars, it has been reported. The Sun on Sunday claimed, external that the cocaine use by the stars - who have not been named - was widely talked about on the show | BBC, UK
More than 82 years in prison for cocaine smugglers after sea chase
Four men have been jailed for more than 82 years in total, for their parts in a plot to smuggle cocaine worth millions into the UK. Scott Johnston, 38, of Havant and Edwin Yahir Tabora Baca, 33, of Barcelona, Spain tried to outrun pursuing officers for around 28 miles at sea after their cocaine-laden boat was spotted off the coast of Cornwall | NCA, UK
Force arrests 300 for drink- or drug-driving
More than 300 people have been arrested on suspicion of drink or drug-driving by Cambridgeshire Police since January | BBC, UK
Police seize £3.6m worth of drugs from house in Glasgow
Officers found the drugs at a house in Milnpark Gardens in the city's Kinning Park on Friday | BBC, UK
International news
Questionable generalisability of the AUDIT-C with Danilo Romero - audio
In this episode, Dr Tsen Vei Lim talks to Dr Danilo Romero, a licensed clinical psychologist at the Stockholm Centre for Dependency Disorders in Sweden. The interview covers his research report on the questionable generalisability of the Alcohol Use Disorders Identification Test – Consumption (AUDIT-C), highlighting the need for researchers and clinicians to reconsider their application of the AUDIT-C | SSA, UK
Financial Incentives for Substance Abstinence: A Systematic Review and Meta-analysis
Does it pay to pay? On average and across different substances including tobacco, the answer is ‘Yes’ – abstinence is promoted by systematically rewarding it with money or redeemable vouchers | Nicotine & Tobacco Research, UK
FBI investigates drug-trafficking ‘epidemic’ in prison also housing Ice detainees: ‘A lot of corruption’
In the first of a three-part special report, a look at the drugs and violence allegedly sweeping through the Cibola county correctional center in New Mexico | Guardian, UK
Minister Murnane O’Connor announces investment in alcohol treatment services in response to growing demand
The Minister for Public Health, Wellbeing, and the National Drugs Strategy, Jennifer Murnane O’Connor, has announced a significant investment in alcohol treatment services. The Department of Health has committed €1 million in 2025, rising to €1.8 million in 2026, to expand and enhance alcohol treatment services across all six Health Service Executive (HSE) health regions for the first time | Gov.ie, Ireland
Alcohol treatment demand in Ireland 2024
This is the annual, updated bulletin from the National Drug Treatment Reporting System (NDTRS) on cases of treated problem alcohol use in Ireland. This bulletin includes a detailed summary of 8,745 cases treated for alcohol as a main problem in 2024. Trends cover an eight-year period 2017 to 2024 | HRB, Ireland
Tobacco tax: How much more cigarettes will cost in the EU
Brussels wants smokers to pay more – but rising prices are sparking political resistance across the bloc | Euractiv, Belgium
FDA to stress opioids’ risk of overdose, death in new medication safety labels
The decision comes nearly 30 years after initial approval of OxyContin | STAT News, USA
Study finds rising cannabis use among Black and Hispanic men with chronic illness
Cannabis use is gaining popularity in the United States, driven by growing legalization, public acceptance and diverse methods of consumption | Medical Xpress, USA
Searching for a lethal needle in a haystack: traces of highly potent synthetic opioids found in used syringes
A class of synthetic opioids that are up to 1000 times more potent than morphine have been found in used syringes across metropolitan Adelaide, sparking fears of a wave of overdoses that could be lethal | University of South Australia, Australia
Blogs, comment and opinion
Making booze cheaper isn’t the answer to reducing alcohol harm
The price of alcohol is back in the news, with plans being discussed to raise the minimum unit price (MUP) for alcoholic drinks in Wales from 50p to 65p | Alcohol Change UK blog, UK
Two of the best stop smoking medications have been available in the UK since 2024 – so why is no one using them?
In 2021, varenicline, the most effective single drug for quitting smoking, was withdrawn from the market in the UK because impurities were found at greater levels than is considered safe. Rapidly, varenicline (then sold under its brand names, Champix and Chantix) became unavailable. This was a disaster for public health. Research from University College London estimated that varenicline being unavailable resulted in about 1,890 more avoidable deaths each year because fewer people were successfully quitting smoking | Conversation, UK
Leading Forward – Mike’s monthly vlog - July 2025
“Experience has shown that trying to create a global social policy is actually very difficult. There are massively different cultures, social conditions around the world. So trying to have a straightjacket or template that everybody follows is probably not a good idea.” In this latest vlog for Leading Forward, Mike Trace (CEO Forward Trust) takes a thorough look into the global drug policy, the war on drugs and the United Nations | Forward Trust, UK
Peptides: performance-boosting, anti-ageing drugs or dangerous snake oil?
For a growing number of middle-aged men, ageing no longer means surrendering to sagging skin, sore joints or slowing metabolism. Instead, it’s becoming a science experiment. The new frontier? Injectable peptides – experimental compounds that promise rapid recovery, fat loss and muscle gains with the ease of a twice-daily to weekly jab | Conversation, UK
And finally...
Want a glass of wine with dinner? Blame our ape ancestors
African apes may be able to better metabolize alcohol, allowing them to eat nearly 10 pounds of fruit a day | Independent, UK