Home | Archive | Weekly | Reports
Daily news - 21st August 2025 |
 |
UK news
Independent report - Response letter from Dame Diana Johnson to the ACMD (accessible)
I would like to thank the ACMD, particularly the Novel Psychoactive Substances Committee, for diligently monitoring emerging threats, recognising the need to consider these substances, and for providing timely advice. I recognise the significant health and social harms that hexahydrocannabinol (HHC) and other semi-synthetic cannabinoid (SSCs) can have and I am grateful for your advice on how best to reduce those harms. I have sought views from colleagues in other government departments and my counterparts in the devolved governments and set out each recommendation and the government’s response | ACMD, UK
Policy paper - Licensing taskforce report: government response
I am ... very grateful to the taskforce for advising us on the key issues that they face and how these can be overcome. These businesses have long indicated that the current licensing system has moved away from its original intention, which was to create a more flexible and transparent framework for regulating the sale of alcohol. We have heard that too often measures imposed on business lack proportionality, consistency, and transparency – creating barriers to growth and investment for business | Department for Business & Trade, UK
NHS marks major milestone with 100,000 people home tested for hepatitis C
More than 100,000 people in England have now been tested for hepatitis C through the NHS’s confidential home testing service, in a major milestone towards eliminating the virus as a public health threat | NHS England, UK
'My addiction experience helps me to help others'
A man whose alcohol and drug addiction left him with liver disease and a 50% chance of survival has returned to work for the recovery team which "saved his life" | BBC, UK
Chloe Cooke – I am a…
Chloe Cooke is a young people’s recovery worker at WithYou. We asked her about her career path and role | DDN, UK
Sprays, Gases & Glues – what do educators need to know? Re-solv training
Tuesday, September 23 · 3:30 - 5pm GMT+1. The first online training session organised by the Drug Education Forum is being delivered by Dan Gibbons, Training and Community Engagement Lead for Re-Solv, the expert charity working across the UK to end solvent misuse and support all those whose lives are affected by it. This training will cover: commonly used products, routes of access, recent cases, associated risk and where to find support. There will also be an opportunity to ask questions. It is intended for: drug education practitioners and providers, youth work practitioners and providers, staff within academic institutions, care providers, statutory services and community members | DEF, UK
Scotcast: The Highland drug lines - audio
The county lines drug epidemic is bringing violence and hard drugs to the Highlands. Detective Chief Inspector Craig Still of Police Scotland tells us how English gangs are targeting the vulnerable and why they are staying clear of Glasgow and Edinburgh | BBC, UK
International news
Networked narratives: Examining how Purdue Pharmaceuticals shaped public health policy and practice
In 1996, Purdue Pharmaceutical's (Purdue) launched OxyContin, an opioid painkiller, with the largest marketing strategy in pharmaceutical history. Literature has now established that Purdue's marketing of OxyContin was a root cause of the current opioid crisis, responsible for over 600,000 deaths in and beyond North America. Guided by actor-network theory, this study conducted a document analysis and key informant interviews to examine the processes through which Purdue constructed, mobilized, and embedded their marketing narratives in global health practice and policy | Drug Science, UK
United Airlines flight reportedly delayed after passenger smokes cannabis in plane toilets
A viral Reddit post by someone who said they were on board details that the passenger was caught and removed from the flight. However, due to the flight crew’s exposure to secondhand smoke, the pilot refused to take off and a replacement crew was found | Independent, UK
Alcohol abuse costing €8.5bn in workplace productivity
Alcohol abuse is costing the country €8.5bn a year in lost workplace productivity, according to Alcohol Action Ireland(AAI) | Irish Examiner, Ireland
Alcohol addiction drives 77% of West Cork referrals - Coolmine
Alcohol continues to be the leading substance for which individuals seek treatment in West Cork, according to the latest figures from Coolmine services | Southern Star, Ireland
Behavioral Therapy as an Adjunct to Buprenorphine Treatment for Opioid Use Disorder
In this secondary analysis of 4 randomized clinical trials including 869 adults with opioid use disorder, results indicated that additional behavioral therapy was not associated with additive benefit for treatment retention or functioning outcomes. No significant moderating effects were detected | JAMA Network Open, USA
Social support is important for recovery, but what aspects matter most?
Although social support is widely acknowledged as vital to addiction recovery, there is limited understanding of which relationships—such as mentors, peers, family, or community members—are most impactful. This study explored who is perceived as most helpful among members of The Phoenix, an active recovery community centered on shared, sober activities | Recovery Research Institute, USA
Who receives contingency management for stimulant use disorder?
Despite a widespread rollout of contingency management in the Veteran Affairs (VA) Healthcare System in 2011, most patients with stimulant use disorder still do not receive this gold standard treatment, reflecting a broader trend of slow uptake in healthcare systems across the country. This study examined patient characteristics associated with getting contingency management using data from within the VA | Recovery Research Institute, USA
Ballot initiative to decriminalize psychedelics in Alaska cleared for signature-gathering
A group seeking to decriminalize Alaskans’ use of certain medicinal mushrooms and other psychedelics can start collecting signatures to try to put the question before voters | Alaska Beacon, USA
Mayor Adams Pushes SUD Involuntary Commitment Law for New York State
On August 14, New York City Mayor Eric Adams announced the “Compassionate Interventions Act.” The proposed legislation, which the Adams administration intends to pursue in the upcoming state legislative session, is part of the mayor’s “End the Culture of Anything Goes” campaign. It would codify involuntary commitment, allowing authorities to hospitalize anyone “who appears to pose a danger to themselves or others due to substance use disorder,” | Filter Magazine, USA
Professor Ian Hamilton: Stimulants - Why Some People Get Addicted, And Others Don’t | Aging Less #22 - video
Diving into the topic of stimulants and addiction may seem complicated, and there a certainly many misconceptions involved. However, it is important to understand as accurately and as compassionately as possible. Host Sarah Stancombe was joined in this episode by expert Professor Ian Hamilton to do just that | Longevity Science Labs, Australia
Blogs, comment and opinion
Breaking the Silence: How Stigma in Healthcare Deepens the Harms of Ketamine Use
As ketamine use rises among young people in the UK, new evidence from Phoenix Futures—a national charity supporting people with drug and alcohol issues—reveals a troubling pattern: stigma in healthcare settings is not only harming young people and creating barriers to recovery. Phoenix Futures’ findings draw on a new survey that highlight the voices of frontline staff and people in residential treatment. Their message is clear: stigma is not just a social issue—it’s a clinical one | AntiStigma Network blog, UK
Rethinking Harm Reduction With Indigenous Communities in Costa Rica
The Maleku Indigenous Territory is located in the canton of Guatuso, province of Alajuela, in northern Costa Rica. Covering an area of approximately 2,994 hectares, this territory is inhabited by around 1,000 people spread across three communities. The Maleku people are one of the eight officially recognised Indigenous peoples in the country and maintain their own political organisation through their local Indigenous government | Talking Drugs, UK
Two years on from Australia’s bold psychedelic experiment, here are our concerns
A small Australian trial that used psychedelic-assisted therapy to improve the mental health and wellbeing of terminally ill patients is in the news today. The results are based on research conducted in Melbourne involving 35 people. All had an advanced, life-threatening illness, such as cancer or motor neurone disease. They also had anxiety and/or depression | Conversation, Australia