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POOR PERFORMANCE
Actors pretending to be drunk were served
in more than 80 per cent of bars targeted
for test purchases, according to a new
report from Liverpool John Moores
University’s Centre for Public Health. ‘UK
law preventing sales of alcohol to drunks
is routinely broken in nightlife environ-
ments,’ says the study, published in the
Journal of Epidemiology and Community
Health.
jech.bmj.com
IMPROVING PICTURE
A new report from the AVA project aims to
provide an updated picture of the number of
women’s aid refuges in London that provide
access for women who use drugs and
alcohol or have mental health issues. A
2002 survey revealed that just 13 per cent
provided automatic access, while a further
48 per cent said they ‘sometimes’ would.
Using freedom of information requests, the
report found that most boroughs now
include some level of requirement to
support women with drug and alcohol
and/or mental health problems, with only
two actively excluding them. The document
wants to see clear policies on working with
women with these needs, a more
comprehensive approach to risk
assessment, and training for all refuge staff
involved in the assessment of referrals.
Case by case: refuge provision in London
for survivors of domestic violence who use
alcohol and other drugs or have mental
health problems at www.avaproject.org.uk
IN HARM’S WAY
Laws and policies and their ‘justificatory
social constructions and stigmas’ are
responsible for worsening avoidable harms
around illicit drug use, according to a
report from Youth RISE and INPUD.
‘Understandings of drug-related harm and
effect within the context of a criminalising
paradigm are predominantly moral’ –
rather than empirical – says
The harms of
drug use: criminalisation, misinformation
and stigma
, which studies the ‘social, legal
and linguistic’ contexts of drug use.
Available at www.youthrise.org
COMMISSIONING COUNSEL
Public Health England is developing a
national framework for commissioning HIV
and sexual health services, the agency
has announced. The aim is to provide local
authorities, clinical commissioning groups
and the NHS with practical advice and
best practice examples. A draft document
for consultation will be available in April,
with the final resource due in the summer.
www.gov.uk
NEWS IN BRIEF
February 2014 |
drinkanddrugsnews
| 5
www.drinkanddrugsnews.com
News |
Round-up
Alcohol education charity Drinkaware has announced
‘radical’ changes to its governance arrangements and a
number of new appointments, following an independent
audit of its effectiveness. The industry-funded charity has
long been the subject of criticism over its perceived lack
of independence.
Drinkaware has published a formal response to the
2013 audit, which was overseen by Guy’s and St Thomas’
NHS Foundation Trust chair Sir Hugh Taylor. The audit was
critical of the charity on a number of issues including lack
of an evidence base – ‘both to inform what Drinkaware
does and to evaluate how it does it’ – and perception of
industry influence, ‘resulting in a suspicion that
Drinkaware is not truly independent of the alcohol
industry’. It also described ‘weak stakeholder
engagement’, leaving the organisation isolated within the
wider alcohol harm reduction community, and lack of
clarity over its mission and purpose.
‘Drinkaware is seen by non-industry stakeholders as
lacking independence from its funders, and some are
sceptical that it truly wishes to encourage responsible
drinking behaviours,’ said the audit document. ‘Industry
stakeholders are aware that these perceptions exist and
are frustrated that their efforts to meet their corporate
social responsibility obligations are undermined by
Drinkaware’s lack of credibility with the public health
community.’
While recognising the ‘inevitable tensions’ facing an
organisation ‘with the remit and funding base’ of
Drinkaware, the report wanted to see ‘substantial
changes’ to the way it operates – in terms of funding,
governance model and the way it carries out its core
activities. It called for a restructuring of the board to
include more lay trustees and the development of more
positive relationships with non-industry stakeholders and
health organisations.
Drinkaware now states that ‘almost all of the auditors’
recommendations have been accepted and have either
been implemented or are in progress’, including
commissioning independent research to inform strategy,
improved transparency and forging new relationships
with the public health sector. It also says that, while
trustees have approved changes to the organisation’s
governance – including a smaller board with no specific
quota of industry professionals – the audit ‘found no
specific evidence of inappropriate influence’.
Former Department for Work and Pensions permanent
secretary Sir Leigh Lewis has been appointed as the new
chair, and there are also three new trustees. ‘The
announcement of our formal response to last year’s audit
and the major changes in the governance of Drinkaware
represents its “coming of age”,’ said outgoing trust chair
Derek Lewis. ‘The new board structure and governance
arrangements represent best practice in not-for-profit
organisations and will ensure that Drinkaware is
equipped to play an increasing role in tackling alcohol
harm in the UK.’
Independent audit panel chair Sir Hugh Taylor called
the developments – in particular the new governance
arrangements –‘very positive’.
Shake up at Drinkaware
over industry links
The UK government will opt out of
the European Commission’s proposals
for a directive and other regulation
on new psychoactive substances, it
has announced.
The government ‘strongly
disputes’ the conclusion of an EU
Commission impact assessment that
around 20 per cent of new
psychoactive substances have a
legitimate use, said crime prevention
minister Norman Baker in a written
statement. The EU’s proposals would
also ‘fetter the UK’s discretion to
control different new psychoactive
substances, binding the UK to an EU
system which would take insufficient
account of our national
circumstances’, he stated. The
government is currently conducting
its own wide-ranging review into the
laws relating to new drugs (
DDN
,
January, page 4), with the conclusions
to be announced in the spring.
‘New psychoactive substances
pose a significant global challenge
and the decision to opt out should
not in any way be considered to
diminish our commitment to tackle
this issue,’ said Baker. ‘We are looking
at a range of options including
legislative ones to enable us to deal
with the dangers many of these
substances present even more
speedily and effectively.’
Meanwhile, police in Scotland have
issued a warning about a batch of
tablets in circulation containing para-
Methoxyamphetamine (PMA). The
tablets, which are being sold as ecstasy,
are pink with a ‘Superman’ logo on one
side and ® logo on the other.
As PMA can take longer to have an
effect than MDMA, the risk is that
people take repeat doses in the belief
that the drugs aren’t working. The
substance was linked to deaths and
hospitalisations last summer (
DDN
,
August 2013, page 5), prompting the
Department of Health to issue a
health alert. Scottish police and
health services have also issued
warnings about red ‘mortal kombat’
tablets featuring an image of a
dragon, following the recent death of
a woman in Glasgow and four other
people being hospitalised.
Government to opt out of EU
directive on new drugs