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Weekly news - 20 October 2023 |
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In date order, Monday to Friday
An evaluation of naloxone transit for opioid overdose using drones: A case study using real-world coroner data
[Open access] Opioids are now the most cited class in fatal overdoses. However, the antidote for opioid overdose—naloxone—is not always readily available. Our aim was to evaluate the feasibility of naloxone transit via drone to provide rapid access at the point of care. ... This study provides proof-of-concept that, in the Teesside area of the UK, drones are more likely than ambulance to get naloxone to the site of an opioid overdose in 7 min | Addiction, UK
Deprivation causes extra 33,000 UK cancer cases each year, analysis finds
Lung cancer is the leading cause of the extra cases linked to deprivation, largely because smoking is much more common in more deprived areas. People in routine and manual occupations in England are about 2.5 times more likely to smoke than people in managerial and professional occupations, CRUK said. There are nearly twice as many cancer cases caused by smoking in the poorest areas than in the wealthiest in England | Guardian, UK
Deliveroo given green light to delivery alcohol in Scotland first
The new concept – called Deliveroo Editions – was granted an off sales licence on Friday | STV, UK
Does a local Alcohol Health Champion programme have a measurable impact on health and crime outcomes? A natural experiment evaluation of Communities in Charge of Alcohol (CICA) based on triangulation of methods
[Open access] Local councils in Greater Manchester, UK, developed the Communities in Charge of Alcohol (CICA) intervention, in which volunteers were trained to give alcohol-related advice to the public and taught how to influence policies to restrict when, where and how alcohol is sold. As part of a larger study, the aim of the current project is to measure the impact of CICA on health and crime outcomes at the lower super output (LSOA) geographical aggregation | Addiction, UK
Consultation launched on the first UK clinical guidelines for alcohol treatment
The Department of Health and Social Care has launched a public consultation seeking views on the first ever UK clinical guidelines for alcohol treatment. To help shape the guidelines, organisations and individuals who provide alcohol treatment and those with lived experience should respond by 8th December 2023.’ | OHID, UK
Amphetamine: new analysis on Europe's most common synthetic stimulant highlights sophisticated EU-based production and environmental concerns
Amphetamine is the most common synthetic stimulant available in Europe, constituting a large and stable market worth a minimum of EUR 1.1 billion annually. In a new analysis released — EU Drug Market: Amphetamine — two EU agencies highlight sophisticated EU-based amphetamine production, as well as the impact of production on the environment | EMCDDA, Portugal
Nitrous oxide: Laughing gas possession to be illegal in three weeks
The ban will come into force on November 8, and will make nitrous oxide a controlled Class C drug under the Misuse of Drugs Act 1971 | BBC, UK
Government response to the ACMD’s advice on 2-benzyl benzimidazole and piperidine benzimidazolone opioids (PDF)
Dear Owen and Simon, I thank the Advisory Council on the Misuse of Drugs (ACMD), especially the Novel Psychoactive Substances (NPS) Committee for its consideration of 2-benzyl benzimidazole (‘nitazene’) and other synthetic opioids... I formally accept the ACMD’s recommendation to control the four additional substances as Class A drugs under the 1971 Act | Rt Hon Chris Philp MP, Minister of State for Crime, Policing and Fire, UK
Wine definition to be watered down in post-Brexit move
The government plans to change the legal definition of wine following Brexit, to reflect demand for low-alcohol versions of the drink | BBC, UK
EU launches crackdown on cocaine smuggling
Commissioner reveals plans to foil child exploitation by criminal gangs as figures show half of homicides in the bloc are now drug-related | Guardian, UK
Commission sets out new EU Roadmap of priority measures to fight organised crime and drug-trafficking
The Commission is adopting today an EU Roadmap to step up the fight against drug trafficking and criminal networks, building on the legislative and operational initiatives put forward so far. The drugs trade is one of the most significant security threats faced by the EU today. Seizures of cocaine in the EU are hitting record levels, with 303 tonnes seized in 2021 alone. The activities of criminal networks have evolved in their scale, sophistication, and violent consequences | European Commission, Belgium
Press release: Charities voice support for government's smokefree plans
Stakeholders met with government today and voiced support for the government's smokefree plans | Department of Health and Social Care and Neil O'Brien MP, UK
The illegal drugs market is changing—is the UK prepared?
Synthetic opioids are entering the drugs supply chain in the UK, resulting in rising overdose deaths—we need to act urgently to avoid a crisis similar to that in North America, write Niamh Eastwood and Shayla Schlossenberg | BMJ opinion, UK