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Daily news - 17th December 2025 |
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UK news
Suspected drug deaths in Scotland: July to September 2025
This quarterly report presents Police Scotland management information to provide an indication of current trends in suspected drug deaths in Scotland. There were 898 suspected drug deaths recorded in the first nine months of 2025. This is 8% (65) greater than during the same period of 2024 (833). After following a downward trend in 2024, the rolling 12-month total of suspected drug deaths has increased over recent quarters | Scottish Government, UK
Warning over harms of opioids as they continue to be biggest cause of drugs deaths in Wales
New figures from Public Health Wales show that opioids continue to drive the majority of drug misuse deaths in Wales, prompting renewed warnings about the significant harms associated with these substances | Public Health Wales, UK
Gen Z behind jump in use of oral nicotine pouches across Great Britain
More than half a million people now consume products as experts link rise to ‘aggressive’ marketing and advertising | Guardian, UK
National drug and alcohol treatment waiting times [Scotland]
During the quarter ending 30 September 2025, 11,444 referrals were made to community-based specialist drug and alcohol treatment services: 5,369 (46.9%) were for problematic use of alcohol, 4,409 (38.5%) for problematic use of drugs, and 1,666 (14.6%) for co-dependency (problematic use of both alcohol and drugs) | Public Health Scotland, UK
Estimated numbers of people prescribed opioid substitution therapy in Scotland
During the quarter ending 30 September 2025, OST was prescribed to an estimated minimum of 26,312 people in Scotland. This was a small decrease compared to the 2024/25 Q4 estimate (26,567) and the lowest estimate in the available time series (2024/25 Q2 to 2025/26 Q1) | Public Health Scotland, UK
The right to housing and its impact on health
This publication highlights the role of adequate housing as a fundamental component of the right to health. It outlines dimensions of housing that shape health and health inequalities and provides evidence and context relevant to Scotland. The resource is intended to support policymakers, planners and practitioners, and includes peer-reviewed input from housing sector partners | Public Health Scotland, UK
Cannabis derivatives could provide new ovarian cancer treatments
A team of scientists testing the effects of two chemical compounds sourced from cannabis on ovarian cancer cells have found that both show promising anti-cancer effects | ecancer, UK
How Employer Accounts at The Forward Trust are Creating Real Opportunities for Hundreds of Local People
This November, The Forward Trust proudly partnered with Skechers to support their new store opening at Westwood Cross, Kent - delivering a recruitment solution that shows what true collaboration can achieve | Forward Trust, UK
Alcoholic Drinks: Labelling
To ask the Secretary of State for Health and Social Care, what assessment he has made of the potential implications for his policies of the effectiveness of mandatory health warning labels in tackling alcohol harms in (a) South Korea and (b) other countries | They work for you, UK
Electronic Cigarettes: Public Houses
To ask the Secretary of State for Health and Social Care, whether his Department has made an assessment of the potential impact of a pub vaping ban on the viability of local pubs which are designated as local community assets | They work for you, UK
The Manifesto Sessions: Drug Checking - A Routine Harm Reduction Service
Tue 27 Jan, 14:00 - 15:00 GMT. Our 8th webinar within our Manifesto Sessions webinar series will focus on community drug checking services. As part of our ‘Setting the blueprint for a more equal and prosperous Wales for people who use substances’, we want community drug checking services to be part and parcel of harm reduction interventions across Wales | Barod, UK
Drug-related deaths in the LGBTQ+ community with Emmert Roberts - podcast
In this episode, Dr Elle Wadsworth talks to Dr Emmert Roberts, Senior Clinical Lecturer at the National Addiction Centre, King’s College London and a Consultant Addiction Psychiatrist at the South London and the Maudsley NHS Foundation Trust. The interview covers Emmert’s short report examining the characteristics of drug-related deaths among individuals identified as LGBTQ+ in the United Kingdom, 1997–2024 | SSA, UK
Hundreds arrested for drink and drug driving in run up to Christmas
More than 200 arrests have been made in the first two weeks in December by police forces in the West of England for drink or drug driving offences | BBC, UK
Dad-of-three killed by drug driver after 999 call
A man who had taken a legal drug and was "swerving all over the road" in his mother's Jaguar before causing a fatal crash has been jailed for more than nine years | BBC, UK
International news
Donald Trump ‘strongly’ considering cannabis law change
Donald Trump spoke about the cannabis industry in the Oval Office on Monday | Independent, UK
US designates Colombian cocaine gang a terrorist group
The US Treasury Department added the group, known as Clan del Golfo or Gulf Clan, to its list of Foreign Terrorist Organisations (FTOs) | BBC, UK
US military build-up in Caribbean has shadows of the past - but differences are stark
The escalating tension between the US and Venezuela has led to the biggest military build-up in the Caribbean since the end of the Cold War | BBC, UK
Doctor who helped provide ketamine to Matthew Perry avoids prison for role in Friends’ star death
Perry died at his Los Angeles home in October 2023 from a drug overdose, leading federal prosecutors to charge five people for their roles in his untimely death | Independent, UK
Health charities urge Stormont to urgently introduce minimum unit pricing for alcohol
All the Executive parties bar the DUP back setting a minimum price at which alcohol can be sold | Irish News, Ireland
Cocaine is now the second most common drug implicated in poisoning deaths
According to the Health Research Board’s (HRB) latest bulletin (Drug poisoning deaths in Ireland in 2022 ), 343 drug poisoning deaths were recorded in Ireland in 2022. This represents an 8% decrease on 2021 (373 deaths). It is the second consecutive year that these deaths have fallen | HRB, Ireland
Smokers and Vapers Face Price Shock Under Brussels Tax Plan
Capitals accuse Brussels of lifting tax figures from activist NGOs while ignoring harm-reduction policies backed by governments | European Conservative, Belgium
Another Failure for the French Government: Drug Market at All-Time High in France
France can boast a new and sad record: for the first time, cocaine became the most sold drug on national territory in 2023, ahead of cannabis, ecstasy and other drugs, with an estimated market value of €3.1 billion. The government’s declared war on drugs has proved a cruel failure: the country has never been so contaminated | European Conservative, Belgium
Webinar | European City Initiative for Drug Policy
Dec 18, 2025 02:00 PM - London time. Join us for a dynamic, one-hour session designed to spotlight innovative and practical city-level approaches to urban drug policy and harm reduction. Three European cities will deliver short, focused presentations (7–10 minutes each), offering a close look at their strategies, models, and latest developments. A moderated Q&A will follow | C-EHRN et al, The Netherlands
Young adults commonly mix cannabis with nicotine and tobacco
Simultaneous use of cannabis with nicotine and tobacco products is common among cannabis users—particularly those who vape—according to a new study from Columbia University Mailman School of Public Health. The research also shows that both vaped and smoked cannabis use have increased over time, with more participants initiating use than quitting | Medical Xpress, USA
Raising legal drinking age improves academic performance and mental health
A study by the University of Zurich, based on policy changes in Spain, shows that teenagers drink significantly less alcohol when the minimum legal drinking age is raised. In addition, a reduction in drinking also leads to improved academic performance and mental health. These findings could be relevant for Switzerland as well | Medical Xpress, USA
UB study examines binge drinking and cannabis use among 12th graders
The cannabis marketplace continues to grow and evolve, offering consumers new ways to use cannabis — and new ways to combine it with other substances, such as alcohol. That practice can be particularly detrimental to adolescents, who are known to use both substances in high numbers | University at Buffalo, USA
Pregnant women with opioid use disorder get more health care, but few medications
Perinatal mothers enrolled in Michigan Medicaid between 2012 and 2021 who had opioid use disorder were more likely to have a premature birth and to use more health care services than mothers without OUD, according to a University of Michigan study. However, researchers found that only 47% of mothers with opioid use disorder were prescribed medication to treat it | Medical Xpress, USA
STASH, Vol. 21(13) – Substance use disorders are prevalent among human trafficking victims visiting emergency departments
. Many trafficked individuals who visit EDs likely need substance use disorder care, given that traffickers often use substances to recruit and control victims, and victims often use substances to cope with their trauma. This week, STASH reviews a study by Nathaniel A. Dell and colleagues that identified the prevalence of substance use disorders during ED visits in the US involving patients who have experienced human trafficking | Division on Addiction at Cambridge Health Alliance, USA
BC Government Doubles Down on Forced Drug Treatment
The British Columbia government is doubling down on involuntary treatment for people who use drugs, fast-tracking a law to skirt a constitutional challenge and giving doctors permission to force medications on youth | Filter Magazine, USA
Blogs, comment and opinion
Trump’s cannabis reform would revolutionise US policy. Just don’t expect the ‘war on drugs’ to end
Rescheduling marijuana might seem an unlikely move for a Republican president – but it perfectly coheres with his ‘America First’ worldview | Guardian opinion, UK
Beyond the Rat Race – Resilient Society in the Age of Alienation
My focus here is addiction and recovery. One of the key takeaways in respect to how people successfully sustain recovery is that they get involved in service to others. This is also true for families who have experienced the overdose loss of loved ones. The pathway forward in life often only makes sense if it includes working to not have what happened to your or your family happen to others. Purpose driven lives | Recovery Review blog, USA
And finally...
Merch commemorating drunk Virginia raccoon raises over $250,000 for animal shelter
Staff at the Ashland animal shelter sold merch of raccoon they cared for after he was found passed out in a liquor store | Guardian, UK