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drinkanddrugsnews
| December 2013
Review of the year |
2013 in focus
www.drinkanddrugsnews.com
JANUARY
With welfare reform set to be one of
the key issues of the year, TUC general
secretary Frances O’Grady warns of the
dangers of conducting policy ‘on the
basis of prejudice and ignorance’, while
outgoing UKDPC chief executive Roger
Howard stresses that most people have
yet to fully appreciate ‘the profound
reshaping of public spending’ still to
kick in. Meanwhile, the Royal College of
GPs issues a statement stressing the
risks of long-term prescribing for medi-
cines that carry a risk of dependence.
FEBRUARY
Hundreds gather at Birmingham’s
National Motorcycle Museum for
Be the
change
,
DDN
’s sixth annual service user
conference. ‘The place was buzzing like a
bee hive,’ commented Recovery Radio
UK’s Jaine Mason. ‘It was absolutely
brilliant to experience.’ There’s yet more
evidence of shifting patterns of drug use
as an EMCDDA report highlights how the
internet has been a ‘game changer’ in
the production and distribution of drugs,
the NTA announces the number of
heroin and crack users has fallen below
300,000 and the proportion of drug-
related deaths involving heroin drops by
nearly 10 per cent.
MARCH
A shocking 117 per cent increase in the
number of under-30s being admitted to
hospital for alcohol-related liver disease
leads Alcohol Concern to demand the
Department of Health outline a plan of
action. Meanwhile the Hepatitis C Trust
warns that local authorities are unready
to deal with the challenge of the virus
as they prepare to take over
responsibility for public health, and the
National Aids Trust calls on London
councils to ensure appropriate support
for people involved in high-risk drug use
in parts of the city’s gay scene.
APRIL
The treatment landscape changes
forever as Public Health England comes
into being, taking over the responsibil-
ities of the NTA, while Sarah Galvani of
the British Association of Social
Workers urges drug workers to
challenge clients who blame violence
towards their partners on substance
use. ‘People need to feel confident to
ask the right questions in the right
way,’ she says.
MAY
Minimum unit pricing for alcohol fails
to make the Queen’s Speech, widely
perceived as the result of industry
lobbying – ‘the red-faced rants from
the multinational drinks corporations’,
says Katherine Brown in the
Guardian
– and a government desperate not to
seem out of touch with the concerns
of ordinary people, although ministers
claim the policy has not been
abandoned. Kevin Flemen advises
DDN
readers on how to keep on top of
the dizzying array of new
psychoactive substances and the
Organization of American States
issues a landmark report looking at
different options for the future of
Latin American drug policy.
JUNE
The 23rd International Harm Reduction
conference sees policy makers and
service users gather in Vilnius to
‘reclaim’ harm reduction from those
who seek to define it as a ‘morally
suspect, clinical response’, says HRI
executive director Rick Lines. The
Support. Don’t Punish
campaign’s
international day of action on 26 June
sees activists calling for more humane
drug policies and a hard-hitting report
from DrugScope and Ava highlights the
lack of support for female drug users
involved in prostitution.
DDN looks back on a year that saw
the drug treatment landscape
transformed with the end of the
NTA and the advent of Public Health
England, while austerity, alcohol
and new psychoactive drugs
continued to dominate debate
The