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Rise in UK drug-related deaths

Thursday, 26 August 2010

A recently released report by the National Programme on Substance Abuse Deaths (np-SAD) shows a worrying increase in the number of drug-related deaths in the UK. The figures show that deaths in the UK have risen by 12% to 2182 with heroin and morphine accounting for 52.9% of the deaths, up from 45.3% in 2008. Furthermore, the report singles out accidental overdoses as the main cause of mortality with 4 out of 5 of the deaths being attributed to this.

The report compiled by information gathered from coroners across the UK showed that drug related deaths in England last year totalled 1524, up from 1374 in 2008. The figures from Scotland and Wales also show an increase in the number of drug related deaths, with the 102 deaths in Wales, up from 65 in 2008. The figures from Scotland stayed broadly the same, with a slight increase to 479 from 477. A breakdown of the report also shows that more than 3 / 4 of the deaths were of men, while almost 2 /3 of the deaths were of people aged 25-44. The report also highlighted a drop in the number of deaths from cocaine, ecstasy and amphetamines, attributing this drop to the increasing use of “legal highs”.

This rise is undoubtedly worrying and highlights that there is still too little effective treatment and adequate services allocated to the drug user community. This continued increase in the levels of drug related deaths can be avoided with increased investment with the necessary emphasis placed on drug treatment and drug rehabilitation and is something the current government should be actively pursuing in light of this report. Release is concerned that the much heralded push towards accelerated abstinence while well intentioned may drive up heroin fatalities further. (Morphine overdoses are, for the great majority heroin fatalities as the drug is identified post mortem as morphine, heroin’s main metabolite.)

British Crime Survey highlights latest drug use trends

Wednesday, 28 July 2010

The Home Office has published the results of its latest research into UK drug use in its annual report, “Drug Use Declared.” The report compiles data drawn from the British Crime Survey (BCS), a household survey in which residents are asked about their experiences of crime, particularly the crimes they have themselves committed. Around 25,000 people are asked to complete a self-report section about their drug use, and  the information supplied is extrapolated to provide a snapshot of the general population, as well as trends in use over time.

The new report estimates that, in 2009/10, some 8.6% of the population aged 16-59 (nearly 3 million people) used illicit drugs in the past year. About 3.1% of these, meanwhile, or around 1 million people in the same age range, used Class A drugs in this timeframe. Approximately 2.2 million adults used cannabis in past year, and 0.8 million used cocaine. The two drugs were the most widely used illegal substances. These overall figures show a considerable decline since the BCS began to measure drug use, falling to 8.6% from a figure of 11.1% in 1996. The drop in the figures centres on the reduction in cannabis use that has taken place over the past 5 years. However, it should be noted that  Class A drug use is at similar levels—down to 2.4% from 2.7% in 1996. This small difference is not statistically significant (that is, it falls within the margins of error of the survey.)

This general stability in Class A usage covers some notable detailed trends: the decline in the fashionability and use of Ecstasy and (especially) LSD seems to have been matched by the rise of cocaine,  the use of which climbed from 1.4% for those reporting past-year use of the drug in 1996 to an equivalent figure of 5.6% in 2009/10 (falling from a peak of 6.6% last year).

These trends must be viewed with caution for a number of reasons. While politicians understandably like to interpret falls as the result of their own policies, the fashions and styles of global and local youth culture are probably much more significant in the changing rates and forms of usage. Perhaps more importantly, the methodology of the survey that collects the information itself biases the results in certain ways, mainly because it is collected by visits to household residents, a process that excludes many of those people most involved in drug use and drug cultures: the homeless, and those engaged intensively in getting and taking drugs and who are unlikely to be easily located by research personnel. Finally, it depends upon the obtaining of honest answers about an illegal activity subject to strong state disapproval. This again tends to exclude those most involved with drugs; the overall results are therefore likely to powerfully underestimate drug use.

Naphyrone controlled as Class B drug

Friday, 23 July 2010

As of the 23^rd July 2010 Naphyrone or NRG-1 will be classified as a Class B controlled drug. This means it will be subject to the same restrictions as all other Class B drugs, such as cannabis.

It is now illegal to possess, produce, supply or intend to supply Naphyrone. These offences can carry punishments including long custodial sentences and substantial fines. The type of sentence imposed will vary if the offence is being prosecuted in the Magistrate’s court (summary) or in the Crown Court (indictment). A full break down of the range of punishments can be found here.

These changes are given force by a Statutory Instrument (1833/2010) which amends the Misuse of Drugs Act 1971 by adding the chemical make up of Naphyrone to the list of compounds that are regulated.

If you have any queries or concerns relating to this change in the law please contact our helpline on 0845 4500 215 or email ask@release.org.uk

Chairman of the Bar highlights evidence for decriminalisation of drug use

Friday, 16 July 2010

Nick Green QC is chairman of the Bar Council, the professional organisation of barristers in the UK. Writing in the organisation’s magazine this month, Green highlighted that a growing body of evidence supports the proposition that decriminalisation can have a number of positive consequences for drugs users and society. He lists the freeing up of police resources, the reduction of crime and the revolving door of imprisonment as peace dividends of ending the drug war, alongside improved public health. Noting that much of the mass media are given to moralising gestures and the whipping up of panic when it comes to drugs, he argues that the Bar Council, made up of lawyers and counting most judges amongst its ex-members, is in a good position to provide a rational argument, being familiar with both sides of the drug policy argument.

Mr Green’s intervention represents another profession speaking out in support of a rational approach to drug law reform at a time when the tide appears to be turning away from the prohibitionist model that was tried throughout the twentieth century, failed to suppress the flow of illegal drugs and added its own side-effects (including an entrenched criminal market and a global epidemic of injection-driven HIV) to those of the drug problems it was supposed to prevent.

International AIDS Conference stimulates call for drug law reform

Thursday, 15 July 2010

The International AIDS conference is held next week (18-23 July) in Vienna, and has focussed attention around the world on the linkages between HIV prevalence and drug policy. While infection rates have fallen recently in the UK, in some parts of the world, such as Russia and the Ukraine, HIV epidemics are spreading rapidly through the population, high rates of transmission being driven by injection drug use. It is no coincidence that these are countries where drugs are spoken of in the strident rhetoric of the “War on Drugs”, and strategies for managing drug problems are dominated by law enforcement and repression. Clean needles and syringes are not legally available, and the provision of substitution treatment for heroin addiction—therapy involving the use of alternative drugs such as methadone and buprenorphine —is either against the law or made practically impossible by harsh police tactics.

In states where harm reduction measures are practised, on the other hand, HIV levels are low and reducing. The close relationship between drug policies and HIV prevalence is becoming increasingly obvious, and is now widely recognized by the scientific community. Amongst academics and clinicians, there is a growing willingness to speak out about this relationship, and about the public health case for drug law reform, in a way that would have been unthinkable a decade ago. This new mood is signalled by a series of recent articles in top-drawer scientific journals such as the British Medical Journal and the Lancet. The Vienna Declaration, which is the official declaration of next week’s AIDS conference, calls for drug policies to be based on scientific evidence, includes an unambiguous acknowledgement that decades of massively funded law enforcement interventions have failed to stem the availability of drugs.  The system of prohibitive repression has caused enormous social and health problems in its own right. The Declaration calls for a “full policy reorientation”, including the decriminalisation of drug use.

There is every indication that after decades of failure, an awareness is moving through the global community that an alternative approach is not only necessary but essential in order to deal with the problems associated with drug use in a more humane and effective way.  

Nice People Take Drugs movie marks World Anti-Drug day

Thursday, 01 July 2010

A powerful new film appears on the Release website to mark the UN’s World Anti-Drugs Day by reminding us all that drugs are very much a part of our culture in the 21st century globalised world. June 26th is used by states such as China to make a public display of commitment to the war on drugs by staging executions of people convicted of drug offences.

People from all sections of society use drugs, but the outcome of that use can vary enormously. Many world leaders have acknowledged using drugs in their youth, but have been protected by social status or just good fortune from being branded with a criminal record. Some, like Barack Obama and David Cameron, have gone on to hold high political office. Others have ended up in prison, or even in front of an execution squad.

The hypocrisy surrounding drug use is what the Nice People campaign sets out to challenge.

Watch the film here.

Ken Clarke: Policies and Prisons

Thursday, 01 July 2010

The Justice Secretary Ken Clarke spoke out this week against the culture of incarceration that has taken hold in the UK during the last decade. The context of his remarks is the economic downturn and the requirement for most government departments to reduce spending by 25%. Clarke was keen to say that these necessary cuts must be reconciled with ‘positive policy making’. He argued that these circumstances of austerity represent an opportunity insofar as it prompts a thorough rethink.

For many of those caught up in the machinery of the law by virtue of addictions and the need to fund them through crime, Clarke’s point has powerful resonance. He pointed out that it costs some £38,000 to lock someone up in prison for a year—more than the expense of putting a child through Eton. There are presently over 85,000 individuals being held in UK prisons. “Prison works”, according to former Conservative Home Secretary, Michael Howard, but Clarke takes a more sceptical line, one that is more attuned to a welter of sociological evidence: “…just banging up more and more people [for longer] without actively seeking to change them is what you would expect of Victorian England.” His speech at the Centre for Crime and Justice Studies announced a change of emphasis for UK criminal justice policy, with less people being sent to prison and more energy aimed at rehabilitation.

Release looks forward to seeing this theme become a reality in the coming years.

Government drops welfare reform plans for drug users

Thursday, 17 June 2010

The Government has dropped the provisions of the Welfare Reform Act 2009 relating to drug users. Drug recovery pilot programmes due to be launched in October 2010 have now been abandoned – the programmes would have introduced drug testing for claimants; information sharing between the police and Jobcentre plus; and mandatory attendance on a drug awareness course – failure to attend would have resulted in sanctions. Furthermore, mandatory referrals of problem drug users by Jobcentre Plus staff to treatment providers in non pilot areas has also been dropped.   

The driver behind this decision was the report from the Social Security Advisory Committee (SSAC), which following public consultation, found that the pilot programmes were ‘unlikely to be effective, contain a number of significant flaws and won’t produce robust results’. The report was critical of the overall scheme, stating that ‘it would drive people further away from the labour market’. The report also pointed to a number of arguments Release made in its consultation response to the SSAC opposing most aspects of the scheme.

Release is delighted that these provisions have been dropped. The organisation campaigned tirelessly on this issue throughout 2009.

'Legal High’ contained illegal substance

Wednesday, 16 June 2010

In the past 18 months the numbers of people using research chemicals as recreational drugs has skyrocketed. Now widely available on the internet, the research chemical market for recreational drug use has boomed, the market now being a multi-million pound industry. The surge in the popularity of mephedrone, the poor quality of already established banned substances and a lack of legal coherence concerning the status of these research chemicals are all contributing factors to their increased use. However, since the re-classification of mephedrone, curious recreational users have been increasingly using a variety of other research chemicals with relatively unknown consequences.

The amendment of the Misuse of Drugs Act in April made the majority of derivatives of Cathinone into class B controlled substances. Since then, a number of other branded products have emerged. Of the research chemicals that are still widely available online, one which has been much discussed is NRG1. Recent analysis of a batch of NRG1 bought from an internet vendor by the drugs information site www.drugs-forum.com produced troubling results. The batch tested using the usual pill-testing reagents found no NRG1 present, but did identify MDPV, which is an illegal substance under present UK law.

Those involved in the testing, development and use of research chemicals were traditionally very knowledgeable about the substances they were using. However, the arrival of mephedrone on the scene, the lack of availability of good quality traditionally popular recreational drugs, and the media hype surrounding mephedrone meant people were buying and using research chemicals with almost no understanding of what they were taking. As the opportunity for profit became more apparent, new, unresearched and untested chemicals have been marketed in the same fashion as mephedrone. The lack of consistency in the batches analysed suggest users must be extremely careful about what research chemicals they are taking, and resist using substances from unknown and unverified distributors.

For a more detailed account, visit Talking Drugs.

Botulism infection among drug users on the rise

Wednesday, 02 June 2010

In the last week there have been reports of a case of botulism in a heroin user from north-west London. The patient involved in this case had injected heroin through skin-popping and was consequently admitted to hospital with a severe infection. The heroin was bought in Watford and Harrow, two separate areas of north London and raises the likelihood that there is a significant batch of contaminated heroin circulating these and surrounding areas.

This latest case highlights the increase in the number of infections of Botulism through contaminated heroin, with 22 confirmed cases in 2009, up from only 4 in 2008 and 3 in 2007. This increase in the number of cases reflects the levels seen in 2006 and 2005 where 22 and 28 cases were reported. These infection cases have steadily increased since the 1990’s among intravenous drug users and those injecting into the skin rather than the veins.

These recent cases follow other reports of contaminated heroin in the past few months, particularly batches of heroin contaminated with anthrax reported in both London and Scotland. The relative secrecy among heroin users means tracking and following these batches of contaminated heroin is particularly difficult and thus ensuring there is current and updated information available to users is absolutely vital in order to limit the number of cases of this deadly infection. Most fatal cases occurring from botulism infections are largely due to failures in recognizing the severity of the disease and estimates put the fatality rate of those who contract the disease at 5%-10%.

There are a number of key symptoms associated with botulism infections and they begin with blurred vision and problems swallowing and speaking, followed by further respiratory difficulties and paralysis. Certain measures can be taken to remove the dangers of infection. Smoking rather than injecting should be a main priority; however, those determined to inject should do so directly into the vein as the blood is far more effective at killing bacteria than skin or the muscle. Sharing of needles and syringes should be strongly resisted, and levels of citric acid kept to a minimum as this can damage the ability of the skin and muscle to fight the bacteria which causes the infection. Different drugs should be injected at different locations in the body, as certain drugs (like cocaine) can further the spread of bacteria.

UK heroin trial publishes results

Wednesday, 02 June 2010

The recent trial of heroin prescribing at the Institute of Psychiatry published its results last week in an article in the prestigious medical journal The Lancet. They provide significant new evidence as to the effectiveness of providing diamorphine ( pure medicinal heroin) to those who have derived little benefit from orthodox, methadone-based treatment. The primary measure used was abstinence from street heroin, and, unlike many similar trials, this was calculated by urine testing rather than by reliance on the client’s word. The trial tested the effectiveness of injectable heroin, given in daily doses under clinical supervision, against both injectable and oral methadone, all strands receiving counselling and social support services. While all clients showed improvement, it was found that injectable heroin was significantly more effective in terms of reducing the use of street heroin. The researchers conclude that, “In the past 15 years, six randomised trials have all reported benefits from treatment with injectable heroin compared with oral methadone. Supervised injectable heroin should now be provided, with close monitoring, for carefully selected chronic heroin addicts in the UK.”

While recognising the controversial nature of addiction therapies, Release hopes that the new government will act upon the substantial and growing evidence base in support of heroin assisted treatment and make this option more widely available for those in clinical need.

More information available here.

Death penalty for drug offences- New IHRA Report

Wednesday, 19 May 2010

The International Harm Reduction Association (IHRA) has this week published a report providing a global overview of the use of the death penalty in drugs offences. The publication makes alarming reading, finding that the total figure exceeds 1,000 judicial deaths per year. “Hundreds of people are executed for drug offences each year around the world, a figure that very likely exceeds 1,000 when taking into account those countries that keep their death penalty statistics secret,” state the authors, Patrick Gallahue and Rick Lines.

Some 32 states permit the use of the death penalty in drugs cases, mostly in relation to production and trafficking. Of these countries, 13 retain a mandatory death sentence for certain types of drug offences. The leading executors are China, Iran, Saudi Arabia, Vietnam, Singapore and Malaysia; these are the only states that have, in recent years, deployed capital punishment to an extent that the report judges to indicate a ‘high commitment’ to the practice. Iran, for example, executed 172 people last year. Some cause for optimism lies in the fact that a number of these countries have, however, greatly reduced their reliance on capital punishment over the last years.

IHRA’s legal experts argue that recourse to the death penalty in drugs cases is contrary to international law, and that the measure should, pending full abolition, be limited to a discretionary option in cases of willful murder.

The report is available here.

Mephedrone Survey

Wednesday, 19 May 2010

If you have ever taken Mephedrone, the Independent Scientific Committee on Drugs would like to hear from you. You can fill in their online survey here. It is completely anonymous and no personal data will be collected about you.

News US drug strategy

Wednesday, 12 May 2010

The new US drug strategy, the first to be published under the Obama administration, was released yesterday. The strategy’s appearance was heralded by the Whitehouse with claims of a new direction for US drug policy, and a new emphasis on combating the problems around illicit drug use by focusing on the demand side of the equation. This tactic is based around a broad set of community based prevention interventions, and an expansion of drug treatment into mainstream healthcare. And while the language itself continues to be rejected, the strategy involves measures which embody the principles of harm reduction.

The strategy can thus be said to build on the administration’s movement away from drug war rhetoric, its repeal of the ban on federal funding for needle exchange, and its acceptance of (or non-interference in) state-level medical cannabis provision. There are also encouraging signs that congress will, over the next year, end the mandatory minimum sentencing disparities between powder cocaine and crack, laws which are racist in effect if not intention.

At the same time, beneath the rhetoric of change there are large areas of continuity with the drug war, readily apparent in the fact that two thirds of the budget remains devoted to law enforcement. A more profound and significant break with the failures of the past would be demonstrated by a strategy aimed not so much at stopping or reducing drug use as such, but at  minimising the harms associated with both drugs and drug policies. These harms are tightly interwoven with the mass incarceration of US citizens for non-violent drug offences. Nonetheless, such changes as there are should be welcomed, and it will be interesting to compare the performance of Britain’s new government when its new drug strategy appears.

Mexico: War without end?

Wednesday, 05 May 2010

Last weekend in Mexico, in a new escalation of the drug war, 24 people were killed in a 24 hour period. While falling short of the grisly record established in January this year, when 69 individuals died violent deaths in one day, it should give pause for thought to anybody who still believes that repressive methods can suppress the illicit drug market. In total, since President Felipe Calderon took office in 2006, over 23,000 people have died in the bloody war the US government continues to support.

Plan Merida, the government’s assault on the country’s massive drug trade, is funded by the US to the tune of $1.4 billion. It relies heavily on military intervention, with the bulk of the money going to equip the Mexican army. However, the project’s ‘successes’—

centred on the arrest of cartel bosses—have only exacerbated the violence, creating a power vacuum quickly filled by violent conflict. And, despite the army’s new US weaponry, organized crime appears able to match it, using a combination of corruption and guns flooding in from across the US border. Human rights groups in Mexico have claimed that this southbound traffic is more severe in its consequences than the northward flow of drugs, despite the publicity generated by the latter.

To add to the human rights deficit associated with the drug war, Arizona has recently passed an anti-immigration law that gives the police the right to search and detain anyone they think looks like an illegal immigrant. Naturally, this is going to impact on US citizens of Hispanic appearance, adding a new layer to an old pattern of racism linked to the war on drugs. It has led the Mexican government to issue a travel alert urging extreme caution to its citizens travelling in Arizona. The measures have also been highly divisive inside the US, with mass protests across American cities and opposition from prominent figures including President Obama. In a final irony, traffickers have started avoiding border controls by moving the growing operation into the US, setting up plantations in National Parks, a displacement tactic familiar across decades of prohibition.

‘Crack Babies’- the Final Solution?

Wednesday, 28 April 2010

The US-based charity ‘Project Prevention’ has this week arrived in the UK. The organisation is offering £200 to addicted women in order to undergo sterilization. In the US, some 1200 women and 50 men have entered into such a contract over the group’s history. Its founder, Barbara Harris, defends her approach on the grounds that the rights of the child should supersede those of the mother. She has argued her case in the following terms: “We don’t allow dogs to breed like this, we spay and neuter them.”

What Project Prevention is practising is eugenics—the management of racial stock. Its arrival in the UK has been controversial, and rightly so. While there may be real problems associated with bringing up children while dependent on illegal drugs, there are other, less drastic and potentially damaging ways of alleviating them. Contraceptive advice can be offered as a part of drug treatment, and psycho-social support services may offer stability to drug dependent women. No information is provided on the group’s website about the medical practicalities of the sterilization process, and Release is concerned about the medical ethics involved. The issue of informed consent also looms large; one wonders how ‘informed’ this consent really is.

In addition, the assumptions in play here need questioning: there are many drug using families who bring up their children successfully, and many non-drug using families who don’t. Such problems as do arise should be addressed by policies to end the criminalisation of drugs and the stigmatisation of users, to provide high quality treatment and support where it is needed—including heroin prescribing—and offering people meaningful employment and a real chance of building a better life.

Heroin prescribing on the NHS

Tuesday, 27 April 2010

The topic of prescribing heroin to addicts on the NHS was proposed for debate yesterday at the National Congress of the Royal College of Nursing. The subsequent discussion highlighted the promising preliminary results of the recent UK trial in which diamorphine, the clinical name for heroin, was prescribed at various locations in England to those for whom more conventional treatments, such as methadone, had been unsuccessful. The study found that crime was greatly reduced and that health and social functioning showed significant improvement. Some individuals said that the treatment had given them back their lives.

The debate recognised that this issue is an emotive one, a fact quickly confirmed by an inspection of the comments left by members of the public when the story appeared online in the popular tabloids. Amongst the most vicious, but by no means unrepresentative, is the following contribution: “How about letting them rot in the gutter where all drug user belong and start saving lives of the good by prescribing life-saving cancer drugs (sic).” The prevalence of such opinions only reinforces the urgent need to remove drug use from the criminal sphere and treat it as a public health issue, since the law as currently framed serves to legitimise prejudice against drug users.

The scientific evidence base for its effectiveness is growing stronger each year, and the prescribing of heroin must certainly be included in the range of treatment options available to those in need.

Update on Anthrax outbreak in Scotland

Tuesday, 20 April 2010

Further anthrax cases have been reported, including another fatality. The death  was in Lanarkshire, Scotland, and represents the first case in that county. It also appears to indicate that the contaminated batch of heroin associated with the outbreak is still in circulation. Scotland, which has been at the epicentre of the outbreak, now has a total of 35 cases, with 12 deaths among them, according to information published last week by Health Protection Scotland. Release will continue to monitor the situation and to provide updates as necessary.

Mephedrone banned in the UK

Thursday, 15 April 2010

Mephedrone is banned under UK law tomorrow, becoming a class B controlled drug under the Misuse of Drugs Act 1971. From that date, those found in possession of the drug may be subject to up to five years’ imprisonment, supply offences will attract a maximum of fourteen years.

Police have issued guidance urging users to destroy or hand in any supplies they may hold before the 16^th April 2010. Please contact Release if you need further advice.

Manifesto Macho

Wednesday, 14 April 2010

The major parties have this week published their manifestos for the general election, including proposals for drug policy. All three are light on detail, and political courage and imagination are not strongly in evidence; however, some are certainly worse than others.

The Labour Party's offering is entitled 'A Fairer Future for All', and discussion of drug policy is confined to one short paragraph appearing in a section named 'Crime and Immigration', a disturbing pairing of two policy areas not closely related except in the politics of prejudices. The content of the paragraph would not, indeed, appear out of place in such a context, being encapsulated in the following slogan: "Our message is clear: we will not tolerate illegal drugs." The general tone of Labour's short reference to drug policy appears calculated to bring it closer to the Conservatives.

The Conservative own proposals, contained in a section named 'Fight back against crime', once again links the motifs of drugs, crime and immigration. "Extremists, serious criminals and others find our borders far too easy to penetrate."The manifesto commits the Party to 'crack down' on drugs and build more prisons, and makes inroads into clinical territory normally regarded as the preserve of doctors and others with specialised training. In an obvious reference to the use of methadone and opiate substitution therapy (OST), we are told that "the treatment too many addicts receive just maintains their habits." The fact that OST is underpinned by an extensive scientific evidence base does not appear to matter. They go on to say that, "We will give courts the power to use abstinence-based Drug Rehabilitation Orders to help offenders to kick drugs once and for all." This represents a dangerous development, with politicians determining clinical health measures on ideological grounds.

The Liberal Democrats are the only Party to make an explicit promise to base drug policy on scientific evidence, and to ensure that the Advisory Council on the Misuse of Drugs is genuinely independent of government. They are also committed to ensuring that police and court time and funds "are not wasted" on prosecuting and imprisoning drug users.

We leave it to our readers to decide which of these positions is least likely to result in a public health and social disaster.

Public Accounts Committee questions cost effectiveness of drug treatment in the UK

Thursday, 08 April 2010

The House of Commons Public Accounts Committee yesterday issued its Report on the government’s strategy for dealing with ‘Problem Drug Use’, a term referring to the estimated 330,000 users of heroin and crack cocaine. The Report quotes figures that problem drug use costs £15.3 billion, of which £13.9 billion is associated with acquisitive crimes to fund dependence. Government spending on the strategy is currently £1.2 billion per annum. The main conclusion picked up by UK media is the Committee’s statement that “we find it unacceptable that the (Home Office) has not carried out sufficient evaluation of the programme of measures in the strategy and does not know if the strategy is directly reducing the overall cost of drug-related crimes.” The MPs did, however, welcome the belated agreement of the Home Office to produce a framework to evaluate and report on the strategy. This step was taken in response to a recommendation from the National Audit Office, and initial reporting will commence in ‘late 2011’, and may represent the beginning of the Impact Assessment of drug polices called for by our colleagues at Transform Drug Policy Foundation.

Release is disappointed, however, at the lack of any honest appraisal of the continued failure of present drug policies or serious discussion of alternative measures. There is no recognition, for example, of the degree to which ‘Problem drug use’ is rendered more problematic, not less, by criminalisation or coercive treatment. The question of supplying heroin addicts with heroin was raised, but the senior Home Office official retorted that this is “absolutely not” government policy; he called it a ‘counsel of despair’ and said such a course meant addicts could never live productively or pay taxes. In fact, people are quite capable of living and working productively while on opiates; while of course individuals vary, much of the despair associated with heroin addiction stems from trying to maintain a steady supply of a drug whose expense is inflated and quality degraded by the illicit market, and the criminal relationships this imposes on users. If the market is legally regulated and distributed, health, time and freedom of attention become available once again to the user. Many productive and fulfilling lives have been lived under these more benign conditions.

Government by Panic

Wednesday, 31 March 2010

In the wake of the CAT panic reported by Release News last week, Government spokesman David Hanson has announced that mephedrone could be banned and placed under the 1971 Misuse of Drugs Act as early as April 16th.  The Home Secretary Alan Johnson has apparently laid a draft order before parliament to this effect. With parliament likely to be dissolved in the next few weeks, prior to a probable general election on 6th May, we are concerned that the move will not receive adequate debate in the House of Commons.

After receiving the ACMD’s recommendation on 29th March 2010 that mephedrone should be a Class B drug, the Home Secretary announced an immediate ban on importation of substances containing mephedrone and other generic synthetic cathinones. Previously notorious for being a legal high, possession and supply of mephedrone will soon be illegal, with possession offences drawing a potential 5 year prison term, and up to 14 years for supply.

Under the Misuse of Drugs legislation, measures such as this require a period of research and review by the ACMD; the reclassification of cannabis, for example, involved over two years of consideration. In this latest case, with the government’s relations with its scientific advisors already under tremendous strain following the sacking of Professor David Nutt, followed by a raft of resignations, it seems clear that the advisory process has been observed merely as the barest of formalities, with the ACMD joining the Government in bowing to media pressure.

There is no doubt that the wild alarm sweeping through the media and politics has driven this process along at breakneck speed, riding roughshod over the procedural requirements imposed by the law. Release is concerned about the swift instigation of the ban, as it seems clear that concern for the health of individuals and society has been overridden by other imperatives derived from media hysteria. This is government by panic, and it does not bode well for democracy.

Panic in CAT Country

Tuesday, 23 March 2010

Over recent days, a full-blown moral panic has erupted over the spread of mephedrone, a new and currently legal drug that has apparently become something of an overnight sensation among the UK’s young people. To use the term ‘moral panic’ in this case is not to imply that there is no cause for concern, or that the drug is safe. Rather, it’s a term drawn from social science which accurately reflects the situation: popular media have reported developments in the most lurid and sensational terms, with hugely exaggerated claims made for numbers of users and—especially—numbers of deaths, as deaths have been classified as resulting from the use of mephedrone before the evidence is in. In short, all sense of proportion has been lost in regard to this issue.

Why? When a reaction is out of proportion to its stimulus, usually some underlying anxiety is at work. And indeed, there are more diffuse and general fears in circulation about the young generation—its invasion of urban centres, where it prowls, hooded and intent on disorder; its disinterest in parliamentary politics; its sexual practices; its absorption in the internet and electronic gadgets, its casual consumption of illicit substances. The mephedrone scare provides a focus around which a concerned older generation can gather. Add to this underlying social trend, the approach of a general election, with press and politicians looking to score points, and you have the classic ingredients of a moral panic. And with it, pressures mount on the authorities to be seen to “do something.”

The appropriate response to the problem is, in fact, fairly obvious. As a number of commentators including Release have pointed out already, what is needed is a reasoned consideration of the research evidence, and a set of actions guided by its conclusions. We do not know yet how dangerous mephedrone is: most of the cases in which it has been present in toxicology reports have shown other substances present, and the precise health and social circumstances of the individuals have yet to be made clear. There is also the broader context of drug control in which the mephedrone question sits: the present regime does not, in reality, provide control at all, but rather hands it over to an illicit market run by organised criminals, with violence, high prices and unknown purity adding hugely to the dangers posed by the drugs themselves. Given this, and the fact that young people will use drugs regardless of warnings, we should make harm reduction information available and so avoid at least the most risky practices. The resort to panic is counter-productive in every respect.

Yes, Needle Exchange Programmes DO work

Tuesday, 16 March 2010

A recent scientific paper appearing in the journal Addiction has focused on the lack of scientific evidence for the effectiveness of Needle and Syringe Programmes (NSPs), one of the primary aspects of harm reduction. Under a headline reading, “Do needle-exchange programmes really work?”, this piece has been reported in a number of newspapers around the world. Despite the reasoned tone of the paper and its reporting by Reuters, the story has generated numerous abusive comments by members of the public delighted to find what they think is a scientific justification for their own anti-NSP prejudices.

In fact, the original paper, authored by Norah Palmateer and others, is a review of the literature relating to NSPs and their ability or otherwise to prevent the transmission of blood-borne viruses such as HIV and hepatitis C. It finds evidence that NSPs reduce risky injecting behaviour (such as sharing of needles), but argues that evidence for the actual reduction of HIV transmission is ‘tentative’. This is partly because most of the primary research on which the review is based did not look at the transmission of viruses, but at changes in behaviour. It was something that they did not try to measure- so the fact that they did not find it is not so surprising. In addition, the scientific criteria for proof are basically impossible to meet in these circumstances.

Unfortunately, however, those with pre-existing hostility to harm reduction and to drug users, have found in this review support for their ideologically driven beliefs that NSPs are a bad thing and should be abandoned. The reviewers themselves state the following:

“The findings of this review should not be used as a justification to close NSPs or hinder their introduction, given that the evidence remains strong regarding self-report IRB (injection related behaviour)…”

Looking around the globe, it is evident that those countries where NSPs are available tend to have low rates of infection, whereas those that don’t, have high rates; and in some cases—like the Russian Federation—explosive ones. We leave it to readers to draw their own conclusions.

Cocaine in the UK

Thursday, 04 March 2010

In a report published today, the House of Commons Select Committee on Home Affairs claimed that cocaine use is growing in Britain, and has become a normal part of life for many people. It calls for increased efforts to be directed at both demand reduction and the international traffic that supplies the drug. The report has initiated a moral panic reminiscent of that which greeted the rise of the country’s first cocaine culture during the First World War and the early 1920s. The national alarm was a prominent factor in the passing of Britain’s first prohibitionist legislation.

In the Daily Mail, Conservative Home Affairs spokesman James Brokenshire (aptly named to carry the banner of ‘Broken Britain’) commented that it is “preposterous” that a line of cocaine is now supposedly cheaper than a coffee in London, while citing the ease with which Johnny Foreigner can slip across the UK’s “porous borders” as the reason for the prevalence of cocaine. He blames the labour government for this state of affairs, while neatly linking the issues of drugs and outsiders—in time-honoured fashion. The Times concentrates more on the role of celebrities in glamorising the drug by ‘getting away with’ its use.

In the Report itself, it’s interesting that Keith Vaz MP, Chair of the Committee, said: “There can be no relenting in the fight against cocaine trafficking. The international trade in cocaine causes untold human misery and social and environmental destruction.” He then lists the issues:  the exploitation of drug mules, the destruction of rainforest and health problems for users. The first two of these can be laid squarely at the door, not of cocaine, but of the misguided (and, in the long run, quite disastrous) ways in which 20th century governments tried to deal with the problem of drugs. A regulated drugs market would solve both. As to the third point, again, prohibition has certainly exacerbated the health issues of cocaine use, since the adulterants mentioned by the Report (anaesthetics, animal worming agents and carcinogens) would not exist if legal quality controls were put in place. Despite the Report’s statements to the contrary, many people are fully aware that cocaine  can and does cause health problems in its own right, and, if it is to be used at all, is best used sparingly. While fully acknowledging the risks involved with the drug, however, it is difficult to see how these are lessened by leaving its  trade in the hands of gangsters.

What the Report does not do is to get to grips with the fundamental issue: cocaine and other drugs are a by-product of globalised consumerism,  which works by providing  people with goods and services that  they want to buy. Drugs remain a curious anomaly in this system, inadequately controlled by an antiquated and discredited set of laws. While drug fashions move in historical cycles, drug use is certainly here to stay; and, like all industries and markets, requires effective forms of regulation to  manage the conduct of the participants.

Check out the Guardian's Comment is Free for more Release analysis of the report: http://bit.ly/cfK9Uz

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Monday, 15 February 2010

Students organise online vigil to remember those killed in Mexico's Drug War

Thursday, 11 February 2010

On Thursday 11 February 2010 student groups around the world will be engaged in acts of solidarity to remember victims of the Mexican Drug War.

On the 1^st of February, 14 young people were murdered in the border city of Juarez. They were at a high school student party when gunmen drove up to their house and opened fire on their victims, many of whom were barely older than children. It is suspected they mistook the address for that of a rival drugs gang.

The open online vigil will encourage individuals to discuss their fears and hopes for young people globally who have become victims of a policy of prohibition.

Anyone interested in getting involved should join Students for Sensible Drug Policy UK online on Thursday 11^th February 2010 between 9-11pm at www.ssdp.org.uk.

Drug testing on arrest for violent offences - is it legal?

Monday, 08 February 2010

The Association of Chief Police Officers (ACPO) and the Home Office contacted DIP intensive areas in June 2009 and encouraged local police forces to increase the use of the ‘inspector’s authority’ provision to drug test more people on arrest.  In particular, the aim is for those arrested for violent or public order offences to be subject to a drug test, to search for the presence of heroin or cocaine.

Prior to this instruction an individual was only subject to a test on arrest where they were found to be in possession of a specfied controlled drug (cocaine/heroin) or it was believed that they were supplying specified controlled drugs, or they were arrested for a trigger offence.  The other situation was where an officer of the rank of inspector or above authorized a test; because there were reasonable grounds to suspect that misuse of a class A drug caused or contributed to the offence. This is also known as ‘inspector’s authority’.

The advice issued in June 2009 actively encourages the police to use ‘inspector’s authority’ as a blanket provision to drug test for ‘non-trigger’ offences - turning it into a tool to penalise more drug users. Initially only adopted in six pilot areas this approach is now being rolled out by other police forces in England and Wales, most recently Gwent (read here for more information).  

The legality of this blanket approach and the waste of resources (both police & treatment services) are two issues that must be addressed immediately.

Anyone who has been arrested and drug tested under ‘inspector’s authority’ should contact Release for legal advice on 0845 4500 215.

Release calls for Scottish Government to implement emergency public health plan

Tuesday, 19 January 2010

Release, and other leading drug organisations including IHRA and Transform, have sent a public letter to the Deputy First Minister Nicola Sturgeon calling for an emergency public health plan to be initiated. In the past two weeks 7 people have died and 14 are in hospital after injecting heroin contaminated with anthrax spores. The advice issued by Health Protection Scotland is advising heroin users to stop or seek treatment. This advice is reckless considering the waiting times drug users in Scotland face when trying to access substitute prescriptions. To read The Herald's report click here.

Read the letter sent to the Deputy First Minister.

Mexico: the Last Great War of Prohibition?

Tuesday, 12 January 2010

As we enter the second decade of the 21st Century, the death toll in Mexico’s drug wars has reached new highs, or lows, with 69 people dying in a 24 hour period. A total 283 individuals have died in drug war violence since the New Year turned, including several beheadings.

The context of this rising tide of violence and death lies in the struggle to control the country’s hugely lucrative illicit drug trade. When President Calderón  came to power in 2006, he launched an unprecedented campaign to destroy the organized crime groups that control the trade. It has so far resulted in around 14,000 deaths, and some 50,000 soldiers and Federal Police have been deployed by the government. Nonetheless, the death toll continues to escalate. The trade is structured around the activities of 6 major cartels, and killings and arrests of various high profile figures have served only to sharpen the competition for power. Not only cartel soldiers but police and vigilantes are implicated in murder and torture.

The situation has strong historical parallels to the other great 20th century Prohibition: the USA’s ‘Noble Experiment’ with the prohibition of alcohol from 1920 to 1933, which issued in bloody gang violence and gave American organized crime access to almost unlimited funds, and the political and law-enforcement corruption that went them. Mexico’s response to the ills of prohibition has primarily been a military one, a strategy that has received the support of the United States (which is also the source of the firearms used on all sides). It is becoming increasingly clear that this strategy is not working, and that more fundamental measures are necessary to take the drugs industry out of the control of criminal organizations.

Anthrax deaths in injecting drug users

Friday, 08 January 2010

Several anthrax infections in injecting heroin users came to light in Scotland during December 2009. The cases were centred on Glasgow, but have since spread to other Scottish cities; six people have now died as a result of the infection. Other cases are presently in hospital, and though the outbreak is so far confined to Scotland, police and health services in Cumbria have issued warnings to heroin users about a suspected batch of contaminated heroin, which is believed to be the source.

Anthrax is an illness that is caused by a bacterium called Bacillus anthracis; it usually enters the body through a wound or broken skin, and cannot be passed from person to person through airborne contact. In these cases it appears to have been picked up by injecting contaminated street heroin. Anthrax can be fatal if not treated. If it is caught in time, however, the disease can be successfully treated with antibiotics. Symptoms may consist of severe redness and/or swelling at an injection site, fever and an intense flu-like illness. It is vital to seek urgent medical attention (from a GP or an Accident and Emergency unit) if you suspect you may have contracted anthrax.

The batch of heroin in question was probably either made or stored near animals, soil or faeces containing the bacteria. The conditions of production and transport of street heroin are not regulated by any governmental agency, and there are consequently no public health or quality controls. One consequence of this lack of regulation is that dangerous chemicals or infections periodically get into illegal drugs and result in death and illness.

The Heath Protection Agency last night issued a bulletin about the outbreak, which is available here.

Women drug mules imprisoned around the world

Tuesday, 05 January 2010

Sasha Brooks and Kimberley Anderson are two young working class British women from Nottingham. They are currently in prison in Sao Paolo, Brazil, charged with trafficking offences, having been found with 5 kilograms of cocaine. A chance meeting with some local dealers resulted in what seemed like an attractive proposition—the chance to make some decent money and escape from debt. Instead, they are now trying to come to terms with life in a tough foreign prison, far from those they know and love. The two women share their predicament with large and growing numbers of women around the world: West Indians locked up in the UK for carrying Colombian cocaine, Tajikistanis in Moscow’s notorious gaols for carrying Afghan heroin, Philippinos languishing in Chinese prisons, captured on their way from a resurgent Golden Triangle bearing white heroin from Myanmar. These are just the beginning of a long list.

What all these have in common is that they are mostly female, all poor, and at the lowest rungs of the drug trading hierarchy. The very term “mules” denotes a beast of burden, that which does the labour no-one else wants to do. They are easily recruited, faceless, functional and disposable. Usually they know little or nothing about the people organizing the trade, made up of a sophisticated global alliance of shifting networks, whose upper ranks make money that the mules can barely dream of. Put these people in prison and others just take their place; the only way to dry up the supply is to alleviate the poverty of wealth and opportunity that drives them to take such risks with their lives and liberty.  

Chinese authorities execute Akmal Shaikh

Tuesday, 29 December 2009

On 29^th December 2009, Akmal Shaikh, a British citizen, was executed by the Chinese authorities by means of lethal injection. Mr Shaikh had been in custody since 2007, when he was arrested for carrying 4 kilos of heroin into China. Despite last minute appeals for clemency by his family and the British government, and protests from around the world, China has stubbornly defended its actions and its independent right to punish as it sees fit.

There’s a colonial and imperial background to this: in China, the memory of the opium trade from British India, which was carried on against the express wish of the Chinese government, and against Chinese law, is still fresh, along with the “Treaty Ports” system that allowed the writ of European law to run in Chinese centres of maritime trading.

In this context, one might expect that intervention on the part of the United Nations would have been more effective. However, Professor Philip Alston, the UN Special Rapporteur on summary and extra-judicial executions, wrote to the Chinese asking them to explain the rationale behind Mr Shaikh’s sentence, pointing out that he suffered from a mental illness. His letter was ignored.

This intervention from the UN is welcome. However, the stream of rhetoric coming from the UN drugs agencies, as well as from British and other politicians around the world, helps to maintain the climate that is used to justify the execution. The Chinese embassy in London stated that, “The amount of heroin he brought into China was 4,030g, enough to cause 26,800 deaths, threatening numerous families.” The question of mental illness aside, China regularly executes people for drugs crimes, and the extreme and exaggerated account of the danger that drugs pose lies at the root of the reasoning involved. The ‘War on Drugs’ may be a rhetorical device, but the bodies are real.

Spice, BZP and GBL to be controlled under the MDA 1971

Monday, 21 December 2009

On the 23rd December the Misuse of Drugs Act 1971 will be amended to make a number of legal highs illegal to possess, buy or sell. The amendment will mean that GBL (Gamma-Butyrolactone), BZP (Benzylpiperazine) and related piperazines will become Class C drugs, and synthetic cannabinoids such as ‘Spice’ will become Class B drugs.

In addition to the change in the law, Release has seen an increase in the number of prosecutions related to the sale of other products which remain legal highs. While it is perfectly legal to possess these products The Medicines and Healthcare Regulatory Authority (MHRA) has made it clear that legal highs fit the definition of a medical product, as they have a marked pharmacological effect in humans.

Medical products are controlled by the Medicines Act 1968 and the sale, supply and advertisement of such products without a license is a criminal offence (possession is not an offence). 

The MHRA (rather than the police or customs) has brought recent prosecutions in respect of the selling of legal highs, although all three authorities tend to work in unison and share information

One such recent example involved a proprietor of a ‘head shop’ who was prosecuted for importing and wholesaling the legal high BZP. This was packaged as ‘Spiritual high, PEP Pills, PEP Twisted and PEP Stoned.’ He was prosecuted for selling a medical product without a license and sentenced to a two year conditional discharge. An order was made for the forfeiture and destruction of all BZP seized by MHRA.

This obviously places those selling such products in a difficult position, if you need further advice please call our helpline 0845 4500 215

Cannabis, Skunk and Psychosis

Wednesday, 02 December 2009

Researchers at the Institute of Psychiatry in London have published a study looking at the impact of cannabis use on psychosis, which has been a hot political topic in recent years. The research had a specific focus on high-potency, “skunk” varieties of the drug. It compared patients admitted to hospital with first episodes of psychosis with a group of people from the nearby community. There were no differences between the two groups in terms of the proportions of their ever having used cannabis or age at first use. However, amongst the cannabis users, patients with psychosis were nearly seven times as likely to smoke the high potency skunk varieties as the second group. Researchers suggest that the apparent greater risk involved in the use of skunk is linked to its higher THC content and low cannabidiol (CBD) content, two of the main chemicals in the drug. In the traditional resin hash  preferred by the control group, levels of THC averaged at 3.4%, with similar levels of CBD. Skunk, by contrast, contains 12-18% THC and 1.5% CBD. It appears that CBD may help to protect against psychosis.

The lead researcher, Dr Di Forti said, “Our study is the first to demonstrate that the risk of psychosis is much greater among people who are frequent cannabis users, especially among those using skunk, rather than among occasional users of traditional hash.” It is unclear whether the researchers are suggesting that heavy skunk use causes psychosis, or whether there is merely a correlation, in which case it may be that those already troubled by symptoms of mental illness are using stronger varieties of cannabis to alleviate symptoms. What is clear is that production of the skunk varieties has been driven by commercial factors in an unregulated market where profit is the sole governing principle. To comment please go to the Release blog.

Cocaine purity impacts on drug trends

Friday, 27 November 2009

Release is concerned about the impact that low purity cocaine will have on the drug scene in general.  The staff on the drugs team, who regularly provide expert testimony at Court, are increasingly seeing cases involving large cocaine seizures where purity can be as low as 3%-4% purity and is on average about 15%. The cost of purchasing on the street is about £40 per gram.

As such many long term recreational stimulant users are not purchasing coke – this is confirmed by calls on the Release National Helpline. Whilst it could be argued that this decrease in purity could be linked to successful law enforcement it is more likely that greed is the real motivator behind this change. Often cocaine powder is being stamped and re-stamped into blocks, being continuously cut, so that the numbing effect traditionally associated with cocaine is now more often the benzocaine or lignocaine used as cutting agents.

Gary Sutton, Head of Drugs at Release states: ‘In my opinion, it is an effect of the recession that we have experienced a lengthening of the supply chain as cocaine passes through more hands from importer to consumer. In a situation not unfamiliar to viewers of ‘The Wire’ we are beginning to see that as benefits become less available to young people and as the availability of work constricts, selling cocaine is seen as an attractive alternative to unemployment or a MacJob’.

This drop in purity may mean some people are choosing to use other drugs such as Ketamine; mephedrone and other various legal highs. However, it is likely that weak cocaine will open the way for methamphetamine – and we will finally witness what has been predicted for years. Not because it is the natural next step in drug use patterns but because when supplies of one drug dry up, people will generally seek out an alternative and, unfortunately, in most cases this will involve a drug that causes much greater harm. To comment check out the Release blog.

Government drops provisions to force drug users into treatment

Wednesday, 18 November 2009

Release’s intensive lobbying against government plans to introduce mandatory drug treatment into the welfare benefit system has resulted in success.

The government has been forced to drop the elements of the Welfare Reform Bill – due to become an Act of Parliament in the next few days – that could force individuals to submit to treatment.

Release devised amendments to the Bill that were presented in the House of Lords by Baroness Molly Meacher, to remove the worst aspects of the proposals. Release understands that in particular, their proposal to amend the Bill to allow for the provision of an initial treatment assessment only, as opposed to required treatment, was crucial to persuading the government to drop the mandatory treatment element.

Baroness Meacher, whose committed opposition to the proposals was fundamental to persuading her colleagues of the need to change the Bill, has commented that, “the government’s original intention to force drug users in the welfare system into mandatory treatment was flawed and unethical.  I am pleased that on the basis of expert medical opinion from the East London Foundation Trust, and by working closely with Release, we have succeeded in removing this provision from the Welfare Reform Bill.”

The final Act will still contain many of the controversial powers initially proposed to identify drug using claimants including drug testing and the sharing of claimants' information between the police and Jobcentre. At least, however, the Government has dropped the most pernicious part of this legislation.

Release Blog

Wednesday, 11 November 2009

The second edition of the new Release Blog has been posted today.

Fear of Music…on the relationship of drugs and popular music. Check it out.

More advisors resign from ACMD

Wednesday, 11 November 2009

A further three advisors from the government’s expert body for drug issues, the Advisory Council on the Misuse of Drugs, have resigned in protest at the Home Secretary’s decision to sack the council’s Chair, Professor David Nutt. The latest resignations were those of Dr John Marsden, Dr Simon Ragan and Dr Simon Campbell were reported yesterday by the BBC. They are, respectively, a psychologist, a pharmaceutical consultant and an organic chemist. The resignations demonstrate more support for Professor Nutt from within the scientific community, and they may not be the last. The move followed a face to face meeting between the council and Home Secretary Alan Johnson, which the government announced had been “very constructive”. Despite this, the three advisors, who have not yet spoken publically about their decision, evidently felt that the reassurances given by Mr Johnson regarding scientific independence were insufficient to address their concerns.

Obama's needle exchange policy under threat

Tuesday, 10 November 2009

One of the most important of the projected changes to the restrictive US drug policy announced by the Obama administration has been its commitment to remove the federal ban on the funding of needle-exchange programmes. This, perhaps the most well-known of harm-reduction interventions, involves making available clean needles and syringes to injecting drug users, and is supported by a powerful evidence base. It has been highly effective in reducing the spread of HIV. The move was therefore welcomed by health and human rights advocates.

However, it now appears that federal funding will be so beset by restrictions as to render it practically useless. Congress has unveiled plans to prohibit the siting of needle exchange facilities within 1000 feet of schools, colleges, libraries, parks and video arcades, or indeed anywhere that children spend their time. Given that exchanges are situated in cities, they are going to be hard put to find any location that is not covered by such regulations. If the move goes ahead, four facilities now operating in Washington D.C. will have to close down. It is to be hoped that Congress will give urgent reconsideration to this ill-conceived and highly retrograde step.

Release joins the blogosphere

Thursday, 05 November 2009

The new Release blog launches itself today onto an unsuspecting world in a week in which discussions about drugs go beyond the usual circle of policy nerds, journalists and evasive politicians. One topic of interest lies in an area that is customarily held to be somewhat arcane: the relation between drug policy and evidence.

Read the first post on our blog: Release on Drugs and look out for your weekly installment in future.

Professor Nutt sacked

Tuesday, 03 November 2009

Release was outraged but perhaps not surprised that Professor Nutt was eventually sacked over his criticism of the government's policy on cannabis. His attempt to bring science and sense into the debate on drugs created a media storm and has brought the issue welcome headlines.

This was a great opportunity for the government to clearly explain its drugs policy and outline why it disagrees with Professor Nutt.

Instead, the government has simply got rid of those who disagree with it, hiding behind the excuse that its advisers can't campaign publicly against government decisions – even when the “campaign” is conducted in scientific journals and academic lectures! Academics like Professor Nutt are considered for these unpaid advisory roles precisely because they have expertise in specific areas – it is absurd to then expect them to stop discussing their professional judgements once employed.

Professor Nutt's role was to advise the government based on scientific evidence not to rubber-stamp a pre-determined political agenda. In trying to do this, he has lost his job and raised wider questions about the government's commitment to policy-making based on scientific evidence.

By meekly agreeing with Mr Johnson's decision, the Conservatives have missed a valuable opportunity to put clear blue water between them and the government on drugs policy. The refusal of both Labour and the Conservatives to enter into the debate on drugs is surprising in the run-up to the 2010 election – we believe that the public would welcome a sensible debate and it could play well with the all-important swing voters.

Release hopes that Professor Nutt will continue to set the agenda on drug policy and we look forward to the debate on drugs continuing to focus on science and reason rather than politics and hype.

Professor Nutt opens the debate on cannabis

Thursday, 29 October 2009

There is perhaps only one person outside of government who can cause a media stir about cannabis at whim. As the government's leading advisor on drugs, Professor David Nutt plays a crucial role in regularly highlighting the government's refusal to bring drug policy in line with the evidence. He has presented a paper and given a short speech about the fact that much of the portrayal of the harms caused by cannabis and ecstasy is inaccurate hype, and the radio waves, TV channels and blogs have been buzzing since.

The Release team have done 7 radio interviews and 2 TV appearances already today - the questions going from the ridiculous, "do you think it's right for Prof Nutt to say that cannabis is not harmful?"  to the absurd, "are teenagers more likely to smoke cannabis if it's in class B or class C?".

Why is it that when it comes to thinking about drug policy, otherwise sensible and intelligent individuals make statements that are devoid of all logic, rationale and objectivity?  Professor Nutt does the right thing by keeping this on the agenda, but Release does wonder when the debate will move on to how to devise drug policies that actually work.

The global impact of Afghan opium

Friday, 23 October 2009

The United Nations’ leading drug agency has published a major new report on the global impact of the Afghan opium trade. In addition to analysing the drug trade within the country itself, the report sets out to follow the flows of opium and its derivates (morphine, heroin) along the two major smuggling routes—the Balkan route through southern Europe and the Silk route via central Asia. It sees the movement of opium as associated with the ‘global chaos’ of addiction, crime, corruption and terrorism.

In typically robust interviews, UNODC Executive Director Antonio Maria Costa claims that Europe loses some 10,000 people annually to “drug addiction, to Afghan narcotics.” Within the pages of the report, the figure for drug-related deaths is given as 5,000 to 8,000. Russia is said to bear the brunt of the effects of Afghan drug exports, with the UN claiming that more people die from Afghan drugs than died in the Russian war in Afghanistan. The report also discusses the links between the global trade in opiates and terrorism.

Many of the statements contained in the report are highly speculative, though there is an obvious opportunity for both organised crime and terrorist or insurgent groups with the vast cash flows at stake in the unregulated illicit market. Mr Costa seems to believe that law enforcement measures, if vigorously applied, can resolve this set of problems; a hundred years of history, however, suggests otherwise.

US relaxes policy on medical marijuana enforcement

Tuesday, 20 October 2009

The US Department of Justice is to stop prosecuting otherwise law-abiding citizens who are using or supplying cannabis for medical purposes. This radical policy shift announced yesterday, reverses both the Bush and Clinton administration's 'War On Drugs' and reflects President Obama's personal views. Fourteen states, including California, allow the use of cannabis for medical purposes although it is still banned under US federal law. Although the move does not end all prosecutions or legalise cannabis, it leaves any prosecution at the discretion of each state, effectively decriminalising cannabis for medical use.

This move by federal government comes at a time when the campaign to fully legalise cannabis in California is gathering pace. Campaigners are targeting getting a vote on the state-wide ballot in 2010. They argue that by completely decriminalising the drug, pressure will be taken off hard-pressed law enforcement officers and raise around $1.5billion for the cash-strapped state in the first year.

Whilst the US is beginning to reconsider its "War On Drugs", the UK government continues to pursue those who use cannabis for medical purposes. Sandra Conway was prosecuted under the Misuse of Drugs Act for growing a small amount of cannabis to relieve her arthritis pain after the tragic death of her husband. After an expensive and upsetting court case, Ms Conway's case was last month thrown out of court by the judge. Release fully supports the introduction of a regulatory system that allows UK citizens to legally use cannabis as a form of pain relief and we hope that the UK government is not only following the US experience closely, but is also listening to our judiciary.

High times in UK nightlife

Monday, 19 October 2009

Academic researchers from Lancaster University have published new research exploring the use of drugs in UK club culture. The major findings, surprising to some and old news to others, include the fact that most people going to nightclubs at the weekend are using illicit drugs to enhance the pleasures of the experience, many using a cocktail of drugs including cannabis, cocaine and ecstasy, alongside growing use of GHB and Ketamine.

Another fact that some would find surprising is that the majority of these people are living ‘normal’ lives with careers and responsibilities. Accordingly many clubs have switched their main night to Friday to give people an extra night to recover before work on Monday morning. The main problems arising from nights of intoxication are in fact those that occur in and around pubs, where alcohol-fuelled violence and aggression are familiar features of the urban experience.

The researchers suggest that clubbers would benefit from having good quality drug-specific information and harm reduction literature available on the premises, but that the drugs laws frighten off proprietors, who can lose their licences if they acknowledge the fact of widespread use. This represents further evidence of the trend where a repressive approach to drug use conflicts with public health imperatives.

Briton to face execution in China

Thursday, 15 October 2009

A British man who is believed to suffer from serious mental illness has lost his appeal against the death sentence he received for smuggling heroin in China. The 53-year-old father of five may be executed by Chinese authorities any day now. Akmal Shaikh was arrested on 12 September 2007 in Urumqui north-west China carrying 4kg of heroin in his luggage.

Akmal’s lawyers argue that his mental illness allowed him to be manipulated by a group of drug smugglers, and many people, including celebrities such as Stephen Fry have publicly called for the Chinese to reverse their decision.

Release and a number of other organisations are working to put as much pressure as possible on the UK government to urge them to intervene on Akmal's behalf. You can email David Miliband, the UK foreign secretary, or join this facebook group to demonstrate your strong opposition to the use of the death penalty in this case.

Welfare benefits at risk

Wednesday, 07 October 2009

The Conservative party's announcement this week that "if you can work, you should work" is the latest indication of the trend towards dealing more harshly with drug and alcohol users who receive welfare payments. The Tories want to reduce the number of people on incapacity benefit by getting all 2.5 million people who currently receive it to undergo a new medical.  This will include a large number of individuals whose drug use and mental health issues currently qualify them for this income.

At the same time, this group of people are also being targeted with proposals to force drug users into treatment. The Labour government's 12 year welfare reform programme culminated with the announcement last year that dependent drug and alcohol users would risk having their benefits cut unless they entered treatment. The far-reaching objections from across the sector to these proposals, which would introduce mandatory treatment for the first time into the welfare system are still being heard. The relevant Bill will return to the House of Lords in 2 weeks time.

It seems that the two main parties are doing battle to be seen to be doing the right thing by jobseekers, tax payers and the public's finances, but their simplistic attitude to moving dependent drug users from benefits, into treatment and then into work is worrying. The genuine need to reduce the burden of the welfare state should not be translated into unfair and discriminatory practices that are unlikely to save money in the long-run.

As one of the most important topics in the drug sector this year, Release is pleased to be tackling the issue of welfare benefits at its Conference on 22 October. The government Minister in charge of welfare reform, Jim Knight MP will be speaking at the conference and taking questions. There are still some places available - book yours now.

Substance use needs of Somali community revealed

Tuesday, 29 September 2009

Release attended the launch of a report yesterday that highlights the issues affecting Somali integration in London, with particular emphasis on substance use and family support. The report was primarily funded by government and facilitated by Adfam, which has secured further funding from the Pilgrim Trust in order to develop the report’s findings over the next 12 months.

Attention was drawn to both the fragmented nature and sheer number of Somali community organisations in London, which has led to a proliferation of services that collectively fail to address the complex needs of the Somali community. The requirement for an integrated Somali forum was clear.

The study found that the Somali community struggled to access mainstream services and that there was a general distrust towards Social Services. The lack of drug awareness amongst the Somali community was extremely evident – particularly amongst the older generation. The acute stigma associated with problematic drug and alcohol use compounded by the lack of knowledge surrounding drugs, has resulted in a low uptake of drugs services by Somalis based in London. There also appears to be a sense of shame in seeking assistance and a strongly held perception that individuals cannot influence their situation. Consequently, sending a family member ‘back home’ as a form of recovery is more attractive than having them access drug treatment services within the UK.

The report recommends that the Somali community ought to be involved in all aspects of service delivery consultation, decision making, implementation and evaluation in order to ensure that service providers are responsive to their needs.

Minister's son arrested for cocaine

Monday, 21 September 2009

The news that former Health Minister and current Labour MP, Patricia Hewitt’s son has been arrested for possession of cocaine is hardly surprising. A 21-year old middle class professional such as Nicholas Hewitt Birtles taking coke with friends on a Saturday night is pretty run-of-the-mill. The fact that this young man has a particularly high profile mother as well as a judge for a father means that he has the misfortune of having his dalliance with the law splashed across the news. Unfortunate indeed, or is he?

One suspects that Nicholas will soon be ‘apologising’ for his actions, ‘regretting’ the shame he has brought on his parents, and ‘promising’ to seek help for his drug use. In return, owing much – ironically - to who his parents are, Hewitt-Birtles’s future prospects are not likely to be hampered, nor would Release want them to be. Sadly, some young men are not quite so fortunate.

The criminalisation of young people for minor drug offences has real and serious consequences for many already disadvantaged people and is not the best way to educate about the risks of drug use, or to reduce the harm that they can cause. Let us hope that like any other mother, Ms Hewitt does all she can to minimise the fallout for her son, and perhaps has a quiet word in the Prime Minister’s ear about doing something to help everyone else who finds themself in a similar position.

Heroin Prescribing results "very positive"

Wednesday, 16 September 2009

A one day conference in London yesterday saw the unveiling of initial results of the UK heroin assisted treatment trials. The lead researcher on the trial, Professor John Strang of the National Addiction Centre, called the results “genuinely exciting” and “very positive.” Researchers found that entrenched addicts who had repeatedly experienced little or no benefit from standard oral methadone treatments made outstanding gains in abstaining from illicit heroin, reducing criminal activities and progressing in health and social function.

The project, known as RIOTT (Randomized Injectable Opioid Therapy), involved treatment delivered at three clinics, one in south London, one in Brighton and one in Darlington. Clients spoke movingly of the transformation that had taken place in their lives while on the treatment, and the data gathered adds to a substantial and growing evidence base for the effectiveness of diamorphine (clinical heroin) prescribing.

The RIOTT clinics offer supervised consumption rooms where users are given intensive medical and social support in addition to injectable heroin. People whose lives were utterly chaotic following decades of addiction, homelessness and social marginalisation are now rebuilding their lives, entering education and employment, and repairing often bruised relationships with families.

Out with the old, in with the new

Monday, 14 September 2009

After 18 happy and successful years on Old Street, Release outgrew its premises and today moved to larger and better equipped offices on City Road. In keeping with our long history of association with this part of London, we have not moved far, but the move illustrates the extent to which Release has grown and developed particularly over the last 5 years. The new space will enable us to accommodate more volunteers, run an even better Helpline service, and undertake more advocacy for supporters of drug policy reform.

With nearly all the boxes unpacked, we are all excited to get on with the job. Wish us luck!

It's all happening on Twitter

Monday, 07 September 2009

Advice was taken, the staff were consulted and the decision was made; Release is now on Twitter. It is becoming ever more important for organisations and campaign groups to maximise the opportunities presented by new social marketing websites like Facebook and Twitter. Release is uniquely placed in the UK to provide services for drug users and to campaign on behalf of all of society for a change to the drug laws, but to do this we need to maximise our exposure to the public.

If you don't know what Twitter is yet, please find out and follow us today! Check out twitter.com/release_drugs

Tribute to Mike Goodman - former Release director

Tuesday, 01 September 2009

All of us at Release were very sad to hear of the premature death of Mike Goodman - a major figure in the history of the organisation and the UK drugs field.

Mike, a qualified barrister, joined Release in 1991 and as director he led the organisation for over ten years.  Before coming to Release, Mike was in local government where he was Labour leader of the council in Hammersmith and Fulham. Mike was tireless in his efforts to keep the organisation relevant with the ‘Drugs in Schools’, ‘Dance Safe’, ‘Social Inclusion’ and ‘Heroin Helpline’ projects. He was the public face of Release through the 1990’s appearing on numerous TV programmes promoting harm reduction policies and a sensible and responsible attitude to drugs, drug laws and drug use.

Gary Sutton, Head of Drugs Services at Release fondly recalls, ‘At the one of the Release Drugs University conferences, short of a record deck to play Marianne Faithfull’s version of ‘The ballad of Lucy Jordan’ - Mike dashed off and picked up a couple of buskers at Kings Cross station and hired them to play for the delegates’.

Mike was refreshingly progressive at a time when new ideas were badly needed. He was fiercely opposed to drug testing and his prediction on how it would impact on civil liberties can now be clearly seen.  Mike was innovative and proactive in getting Release involved in the club and rave scene, a move no other drug charities would consider.

All at Release send their sympathy to Mike’s family at this sad time.

Government crackdown on legal highs

Tuesday, 25 August 2009

The UK government announced today that intends to prohibit the use of several “legal highs” by the end of the year, in line with expectations outlined in Release’s News item of 13.08.09.

Home Secretary Alan Johnson said this morning: “Legal highs are an emerging threat, particularly to young people, and we have a duty to educate them about the dangers. That’s why we are also launching a campaign in September to highlight the risks.”

The ACMD recently recommended the proscription of Spice, whose active ingredient is composed of synthetic cannabinoids, and the government has made clear its intention to act on this recommendation. Alongside Spice, the following substances will be outlawed: GBL and 1,4 Butanediol (which is similar in effect to GHB) and BZP and related piperazines.

An article appeared in this week’s issue of the Lancet entitled “Taking the Spice out of legal smoking mixtures.” It discusses the ACMD’s recommendations and points to both the “unknown dangers” of such mixtures and the “psychotropic effects that they do elicit”. However, Release would suggest that adding these substances to the long list of forbidden chemicals is likely to add spice to the mixture- the frisson of forbidden fruit. We suggest that a properly regulated licit market would regulate potential harms much more effectively than the blunt instrument of legal prohibition.

Information regarding the chemicals involved and proposed changes to the law is summarized by the Home Office here

A step closer to precription heroin?

Wednesday, 19 August 2009

A recent Canadian study has explored the merits of prescribing pharmaceutical heroin as an alternative to methadone prescribing.

Evidence from the study has shown this treatment to be highly successful. In a research group of problematic drug users who had failed methadone treatments in the past, 90% of those treated by heroin remained within rehabilitation programs one year later as opposed to just 54% of those treated by methadone. In addition, monthly spending on drugs took a substantial drop for those within the heroin-treated group alongside a reduction in illicit drug use and other illegal activities. “Without medical heroin, these people who’ve already been written off as beyond help would be on street drugs, exposing themselves to harms like overdose, HIV and illegal activities” claims the study’s author, Dr. Martin Schechter.

Response to using heroin as method of addiction treatment has varied. Switzerland and the Netherlands have begun prescribing heroin as part of their medical system whilst Germany, Spain and the U.S do not support the movement. The U.K has recommended that heroin should only be considered as a last resort.

Dr. Schechter argues that this avenue of treatment warrants serious consideration: “People need to have an open mind... [Medical heroin] is good for the people addicted to heroin and very good for the community. It saves money and gets rid of black market criminal activity.”

To read the report click here

Legal highs present an opportunity to try something new

Thursday, 13 August 2009

As reports of how the government plans to tackle the use of so-called legal highs makes headlines, Release has submitted a paper to the Home Office consultation on two of the more dangerous substances, GBL and BZP. These substances, both of which have legitimate use in industry but are now being consumed on a recreational basis, should be controlled with a new licensing and regulation system, Release argues.  The opportunity for the government to test these methods as against the previously unsuccessful strategy of criminalisation (since Ketamine was made illegal, its use has increased) should not be missed.

Having been asked to look at legal products such as 'Spice' - synthetic cannabinoids similar in effect to cannabis - the Advisory Council on the Misuse of Drugs (ACMD) has this week recommended that they be made illegal. Their judgment is disappointing though unsurprising considering their remit.  Later this year these products are therefore likely to be brought in line with cannabis and classified as Class B drugs.  The fact that the legal high market, with massive popular appeal and the potential for huge profit, has already adapted to produce other substances not covered by new legislation, seems to have escaped the government's attention. There is no doubt that a pragmatic approach of effective public health messaging and strict consumer regulation would have more impact on the harm caused by these substances, and that by continuing to chase its tail in an attempt to stay ahead of the demand for drugs and those who supply them, the government has once again demonstrated its complete incapacity to manage and reduce the harm caused by drugs in society.

Read Release's BZP submission here.

Read Release's GBL submission here.

Response to guidelines on burglary offences

Monday, 10 August 2009

Release has submitted its response to the Sentencing Advisory Panel’s consultation paper on sentencing for burglary in a dwelling.

Release welcomes the Panel’s view that custodial sentences are not necessarily the most appropriate way to deal with defendants who offend because of drug or alcohol addiction. However, in our opinion the Panel did not go far enough and urged them to acknowledge that dependency does impact on the seriousness of the offence.

Release strongly recommended that rehabilitation of drug-dependent burglars should be a priority and so they should be sentenced to community orders with rehabilitation and/or treatment requirements.

Read Release's submission here.

Sniffer dog campaign reaches the High Court

Friday, 07 August 2009

Release is taking legal action against the British Transport Police (BTP) for breach of human rights, unlawful search and trespass to the person, regarding the use of sniffer dogs to detect drugs.

Release Executive Director, Sebastian Saville was stopped and searched by the BTP at Camden Town underground station in June 2008 following a positive indication by a sniffer dog. Mr Saville had no illegal drugs in his possession. All information gathered by Release shows that sniffer dogs are wrong approximately 75% of the time. Despite this startling level of inaccuracy, a positive indication by a sniffer dog currently gives the police reasonable grounds to proceed with a personal search.

The action, which is being taken on pro bono by 1 Pump Court barristers, is to challenge the continued erosion of civil liberties, as law abiding members of the public are prevented from going about their daily business as a result of an indication by a dog.

The Police and Criminal Evidence Act 1984 states that police may not stop and search an individual on grounds of reasonable suspicion based on personal factors alone unless there is a reliable supporting source of intelligence or information, or some specific behaviour by the person. Since Sebastian’s behaviour was in no way suspicious, and dogs themselves are not reliable indicators, it is claimed that he was therefore unlawfully detained and searched. Release argues that these actions constituted a breach of Sebastian’s fundamental human rights to freedom of movement and respect for private life, as well as constituting a trespass to his person.

The case is expected to reach the High Court later this year. If Sebastian and Release are successful in their claim, the police will be forced to desist from using sniffer dogs for the detection of drugs. Follow how the press are covering the story here and here.

Update on international drug policy from Geneva

Wednesday, 05 August 2009

Release, as part of the IDPC delegation, attended The Substantive Session of the Economic and Social Council (ECOSOC) on 30th July in Geneva, which embedded the disappointing outcomes from the Commission on Narcotic Drugs (CND) Vienna report, deep into international drug policy. However, the efforts of the United Kingdom delegation and the chair of IDPC, ensured that the door is not closed to further debate.

The report, which buries mention of the harm reduction issue deep in the text, would have been adopted without any recognition of the fractured consensus upon which it rests were it not for the speeches of the United Kingdom Delegate and of Mike Trace, chair of IDPC. Considering that twenty six countries had been so concerned by the Vienna process in March as to formally state that they would interpret harm reduction into the political declaration, it was disappointing that only the UK and IDPC formally intervened at this stage to mark the fractured consensus and the system-wide incoherence that is demonstrated by the political declaration.  The CND report will now go to Committee Stage in New York.

At the same meeting, Bolivia commenced the formal process by which they hope to delete parts of article 49 of the Single Convention on Narcotic Drugs, 1961.  Bolivia proposes that signatories to the Convention may reserve the right to permit coca leaf chewing in its own territories.

The Bolivian proposal was supported by a letter from the President of Bolivia Evo Morales which explains that coca leaf chewing is a non-harmful and ancient socio-cultural practice and ritual of the Andean indigenous peoples closely linked to their history and cultural identity practised today by millions of people in Bolivia, Peru, northern Argentina and Chile, Ecuador, and Colombia. The Bolivian delegate to Ecosoc assured other delegates that ‘we are not talking about free growing of coca so as not to feed the narco trade’ and explained that the proposed amendment to the Convention would allow countries to ‘make up their own minds’ on coca-leaf chewing, in line with the principle of non-intervention in the affairs of sovereign states.

Cannabis factories and prohibition

Thursday, 23 July 2009

Recent weeks have seen increasing numbers of cannabis factories being raided and shut down by police across the UK. The ‘factories’ are located in houses where hydroponic equipment is employed to grow large quantities of intensively cultivated skunk. They are often run by Vietnamese organised crime groups and staffed by illegally trafficked immigrants—sometimes children. To pay off their debt to the trafficking groups, they live, eat and sleep in squalid houses overseeing the growing process. The lives of those who tend the plants under these conditions can resemble those of prisoners.

This circumstance has led the Yorkshire Post to state that: “Those who kid themselves that the trade in cannabis is a victimless crime should take a long hard look at the experience of those forced to work in it.” The blame for the situation is laid at the door of cannabis consumers in the UK. However, we would wish to remind the Post and its readers that the lack of a regulated cannabis industry is what allows criminal gangs to operate in this way. It is a direct result of the failed project of drug prohibition. Human rights abuses and criminal control of drug production will continue to exist until that fundamental fact changes.

Read the Yorkshire Post article here.

Response to new guidelines on drug offences

Thursday, 16 July 2009

Release has submitted its response to the Sentencing Advisory Panel’s consultation on sentencing for drug offences. The response elaborates on limiting the use of custodial sentences for drug offenders, attempting to take some of the panels recommendations further towards a more comprehensive way of rehabilitating drug users.

Release welcomes the Panel’s view that long custodial sentences for drug offenders do not act as a deterrent for others. Reform and rehabilitation must be the priority when sentencing, along with the making of reparation by offenders to people affected by their offences.

Release has recommended to the Panel that they put an end to all custodial sentences for those in possession of drugs. A range of mitigating factors for sentencing have also been recommended, including for social supply, if the drugs were used to help a medical condition or if the defendant was under pressure from a third party.

Release opposes the Panel’s guideline on the use of confiscation orders in all cases. It is too expensive and punitive and is not effective in terms of rehabilitation for the user.

We are pleased that the Panel has highlighted the vulnerability of ‘drug mules’ and the difficulties that surround them and other subordinate players like them in the drug trafficking world. However, Release remains concerned that the principle that individuals such as these are to receive more lenient sentences has not been spelt out clearly enough in the guidelines made by the Panel.

Release continues to urge the Panel along with other lawmakers to search for other ways of dealing with the increasing number of people in the UK who are being criminalised every year for the possession of drugs.

Read Release's submission here.

China marks UN Drugs day with executions

Wednesday, 01 July 2009

As has become customary in recent years, China has marked UN World Drug Day 26th June with a raft of executions. While UN Secretary General Ban Ki-Moon urged the world’s peoples to “join together to help people suffering from drug addiction and to reduce the number of dangerous places on this planet where drugs are produced, trafficked and consumed”, the reality of the annual event was remote from these life-affirming sentiments.

The Chinese state press agency has announced that 20 people were put to death, with more executions scheduled and numerous trials underway in a harsh response to the country’s escalating drug culture. Those executed included alleged traffickers in heroin and methamphetamine. Meanwhile some 6 tons of confiscated drugs were burned in a public ceremony. The affluence accompanying China’s rapid economic growth is leading to the expansion in all forms of consumption, including that of psychoactive substances.