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Daily news - 11th August 2025 |
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UK news
Over-70s face driving ban for failing eye tests
Wales and England's drink-driving limit is also set to be tightened to be in line with Scotland's, with penalty points to be introduced for passengers not wearing a seatbelt | BBC, UK
Guidance - Wound aware: a resource for drug services
Page updated with new resources for drug services to help them prevent, identify, treat and manage wounds in people who inject drugs | DHSC, UK
85% of UK Vapers Switch to Reusables Post Single-Use Ban
But One in Four Single-Use Vapers Return to Smoking or Turn to Illicit Products as Widespread Misperceptions and Black Market Persist | Grocery Trader, UK
We easily bought illegal vapes and cigarettes across Wales, then we confronted the shopkeeper
Interspersed with the street's many fast food joints and barber's are six vape shops, all but one of which offered our undercover journalists illegal nicotine products. These ranged from disposable vapes — banned in June — to super-cheap packets of foreign cigarettes with no clear health warning | Wales Online, UK
10 Year Health Plan: what does it mean for cancer and the National Cancer Plan?
The 10 Year Health Plan set out to address the challenges identified in the Darzi report through three ‘big shifts’ – from a focus on sickness to a focus on prevention, from an analogue service to a digital one, and from relying on hospitals to provide care to offering care in communities | Cancer Research UK, UK
Half of deputies back cannabis decriminalisation [Guernsey]
Eleven of the island's 38 politicians have said they are either undecided on the issue, or will wait to see any proposals before making a decision. While four have expressed their opposition, while 19 supported plans to decriminalise the class B drug locally | BBC, UK
Alcohol Occasional 3: Scotland’s first Managed Alcohol Programme
Mon, 1 Sep 2025 12:45 - 14:00 BST. This seminar, titled 'Scotland’s first Managed Alcohol Programme: evaluating the impact to inform future service delivery and research', will be delivered by Dr Emma King, Dr Hannah Carver and Jessica Greenhalgh | SHAAP, UK
Dad and son's £1m steroid lab undone by dodgy dog grooming shop
Macaulay Dodd was an angry, mixed-up teenage boy reeling from the break-up of his parents' marriage and desperately looking to his gym-going older brother and friends for guidance on how to weather the path to adulthood | BBC, UK
Doctor suspended for using dead patients' names to get drugs
Dr John Henderson used various names at 17 pharmacies across Glasgow and Lanarkshire between July 2021 and February 2022 to obtain painkillers | BBC, UK
International news
Trump reportedly considers reclassifying marijuana as less dangerous drug
President told people at a fundraiser last month he was considering changing marijuana’s Schedule I classification | Guardian, UK
US embassy worker accused of smuggling cocaine into New York disguised as packages of cigarettes and candy
The security officer helped to recruit couriers who would transport the drugs into multiple New York area airports, according to prosecutors | Independent, UK
Trump administration doubles reward for arrest of Venezuela’s president to $50m
Nicolás Maduro was indicted in 2020 on federal charges of narcoterrorism and conspiracy to import cocaine | Guardian, UK
Meet the five-time beer-mile world champion: ‘I knew I could chug from a young age’
Corey Bellemore keeps dominating the Beer Mile World Classic, which involves running after glugging four drinks | Guardian, UK
Access to recreational cannabis in Switzerland with Lavinia Baltes - podcast
In this episode, Dr Tsen Vei Lim talks to Dr Lavinia Baltes, Head of Research at the Clinic for Psychiatry and Psychotherapy, Psychiatric Services Aargau, Switzerland. The interview covers her research report on a randomised control trial of public health-oriented recreational cannabis access compared to illegal market access in Basel-Stadt, Switzerland | SSA, UK
Terms of Reference - Steering Group established to provide oversight and guidance to the development of the new national drugs strategy
The Steering Group will be established for a period of six months to provide expert opinion and oversee the drafting of the new National Drugs Strategy. The Steering Group will provide a forum in which key stakeholder representatives from government, civil society and persons with lived experience can collaborate to prepare and recommend the vision of a whole of society approach to prevent and mitigate illicit drug use and its impact on individuals, their families and communities | DoH, Ireland
Study finds 36% of e-scooter related accidents involve alcohol, while helmet use declines
The presence of alcohol and drugs in people involved in falls and collisions from e-scooters has doubled, while helmet use has decreased since e-scooters were legalised for public roads last year, according to new research | Irish Examiner, Ireland
Drug-related corruption and crime plague European seaports
The EU-funded POSEIDON project seeks solutions to the serious issues of corruption and organized crime in European port operations. As drug interceptions increase and local authorities seek solutions, the POSEIDON project puts in-depth analysis into action | Consultancy.eu, The Netherlands
The Need for a Conscioussness Culture: Interview with Thomas Metzinger
In this thought-provoking conversation, Prof. Dr. Thomas Metzinger, a leading philosopher of mind and consciousness, examines the profound potential — and serious risks — of psychedelics | Drug Reporter, Hungary
CDC Launches New Campaign to Address Youth Substance Use and Mental Health
The back-to-school season is a great time to engage with youth about mental health and substance use to promote their well-being throughout the academic year. To support these conversations, the Centers for Disease Control and Prevention (CDC) has launched Free Mind, a new national campaign that provides youth ages 12-17 and their parents and caregivers with resources and information about substance use, mental health, and the connection between the two | CDC, USA
Vaping cannabinoid mixtures produces a chemical that destroys human tissue, research reveals
In addition to being used recreationally, marijuana and cannabidiol, or CBD, one of the cannabinoids produced by the marijuana plant, are thought to have medical benefits, such as helping with chemotherapy-induced nausea, treating epilepsy, relieving pain and helping with a variety of mental health issues | Medical Xpress, USA
Five things to know about cannabis and psychosis
"Cannabis from the 2000s is not the same as in 2025," said co-author Dr. Nicholas Fabiano, MD, resident and researcher with the Department of Psychiatry, University of Ottawa, Ottawa, Ontario. "THC content has increased by five times. This is likely a significant driver in the increasing link between cannabis use and schizophrenia." | Medical Xpress, USA
Alcohol ads are returning to the NYC transit system, alarming public health experts
In 2018, hoping to curb underage drinking, the Metropolitan Transit Authority banned advertising for alcoholic beverages in New York City’s transit system. But the MTA board backtracked this summer, approving significant carve-outs for alcohol ads in subways, buses, and stations. The move stunned public health experts and advocates, who say that the harmful health effects of alcohol consumption, particularly for young people, far outweigh any potential revenue | Healthbeat, USA
New residential addictions treatment facility planned in Hamilton following closure of safe drug use site
A new residential addictions treatment program will open in Hamilton after the province closed the city's only safe drug use site early this year | CBC, Canada
Drug Trends output: Trends in drug-related hospitalisations in Australia, 2003-2023
This output addresses research questions of significant public health importance in Australia by identifying trends in illicit drug-related harms and informing responsive policy development. presents the most recent and in-depth data on drug-related hospitalisations in Australia, covering the period from 2003-04 to 2022-23. Findings are reported by age, sex, jurisdiction, remoteness area, diagnosis and drug type | NDARC, Australia
Blogs, comment and opinion
Compensatory Puffing
Negotiations to develop a global treaty to end plastic pollution have resumed in Geneva. They follow a resolution by the UN Environment Assembly in 2022 to forge a legally binding international agreement that addresses the full life cycle of plastic, including its production, design and disposal | LRB blog, UK
A Historic Opportunity: Why the global liberation of the coca leaf matters on the International Day of the World’s Indigenous Peoples
As we mark the International Day of the World’s Indigenous Peoples, we must reflect on how international drug control has historically marginalised and harmed Indigenous communities, and why the current review of the coca leaf by the World Health Organisation (WHO) represents a long-overdue opportunity to redress a historic injustice | IDPC blog, UK