Drug users in Britain now have a bigger say in how their treatment system works than most other parts of the world. But, says Peter McDermott, we are in danger of letting a decade of progress slip through our hands if politicians restrict the paths to recovery.…
Druglink
Druglink article 2010 – High on aspiration by Sara McGrail and David MacKintosh
Sara McGrail and David MacKintosh look at a decade of change within the drugs sector – and the looming government spending review. It’s July 2010 and a new broom is sweeping through Whitehall in the shape of a coalition government, short on policy detail, but high…
Druglink article 2010 – Through the looking glass by Marcus Roberts
Evidence-based policy rightly forms the backbone for how we tackle problem drug use. But we must recognise the limits of a purely scientific approach, says Marcus Roberts. The Wikipedia entry for ‘evidence-based policy’ suggests that it “can be traced back as far as…
Druglink article 2010 – The Blair experiment by Alex Stevens
Crime was always the lens through which the Labour government viewed drug policy. This focus led to a massive expansion of investment in drug treatment and the merging of this sector with the criminal justice system. The question now is whether these measures succeeded – and whether…
Druglink article 2010 – Sink or swim by Susanne MacGregor
Britain now has arguably one of the best drug treatment systems in the world. But there are choppy waters ahead, says Susanne MacGregor. The government’s 2008 drugs strategy aimed to “deliver new approaches to drug treatment and social reintegration”. It gave long overdue attention to…
Druglink article 2010 – Snow, skunk and psychonauts by Max Daly
Which substances have been the movers and shakers in the drug market over the last ten years? Max Daly on the rise of cocaine, cannabis farms, internet highs and the rapidly evolving business of selling drugs. As Britain awoke in the year…
Druglink article 2010 – The hit parade
Flicking through 10 years of news stories in Druglink magazine, it’s easy to see why the media, politicians and the public at large find illegal drugs such an intriguing subject. It is a world, over the last decade, that has encompassed everything from sniffer dogs patrolling…
Druglink news item 2010 – NRG brand masks illegal mephedrone sales by Andrew McNicoll and Mike Power
A series of banned drugs are being sold disguised as ‘legal high’ brands like NRG-1, tests have revealed. Most NRG-1 or NRG-2 branded products tested in separate studies by police, academics and drug user forums contained recently outlawed Class B drugs including mephedrone, flephedrone, MDPV and butylone…
Druglink article 2010 – Good stigma: an oxymoron by Harry Shapiro
A debate has sprung up, chiefly within the letter pages of Drink and Drugs News, around the effects of what is being called ‘bad’ stigma (people being shunned because they have drug problems) and ‘good’ stigma (ensuring drugs are not seen as a cool or sensible…
Druglink factsheet 2010 -Mephedrone
What it is, legal status, prevalence, effects and risks Mephedrone (PDF)