News
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Pressure for permanent pill-testing service in Canberra after successful festival trials
Greens leader and Minister for Mental Health Shane Rattenbury acknowledged there were many in the community still uncomfortable with pill testing, but said the debate had to move on. “It’s been effective in potentially saving young lives. For me, that’s the bottom line,” he said. “I would hate to see…
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Drug Alerts: Warning the Public About Toxic Batches of Illicit Drugs
The war on drugs has been hailed an abject failure. And a prime example as to why is that prohibition has resulted in a rise in the availability of illegal drugs, as well as increased levels of consumption. And without any quality control, no one has any idea of what they’re actually taking.…
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NSW commission recommends more injecting clinics to stem tide of ice
A NSW special commission of inquiry into crystal methamphetamine has recommended the decriminalisation of illicit drugs, the statewide expansion of injecting clinics, and drug testing facilities for users at fixed sites, under a dramatic overhaul of existing policies criticised for failing to stem addiction around Australia. As a fundamental first…
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Hand-picked commissioner slams government’s ‘tired, unimaginative’ drug policies
The state government has been left embarrassed after the professor hand-picked to solve the ice crisis landed ministers with a raft of suggestions they have already rejected. Opening up more injecting rooms, ditching drug detection dogs at music festivals, limiting strip searches, making ice pipes legal, and decriminalising the personal…
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Australia’s war on drugs is a failure
When policymakers consider how ongoing drug use trends combine with this new threat, it is clear that current and previous drug strategies will not be an effective tool, and lack the necessary ability to truly tackle this issue. A strong policy response to these problems will require innovative approaches that…
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Growing push for Sydney’s second medically supervised injecting room
The Berejiklian government is facing a growing push to set up a safe injecting room in western Sydney as data on overdose deaths show the opioid crisis has spread to the outer suburbs. Criminologists are the latest to call for a second injecting room after a recommendation from Deputy State…
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‘No excuse’: Doctors urge immediate release of ice inquiry report
Doctors and drug law reform advocates are calling on the NSW government to urgently release the findings of a special commission of inquiry into the drug ice. The four-volume report was delivered to the Berejiklian government by commissioner Professor Dan Howard on January 28, but the government has not publicly…
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NZ: Universities called on to make drug testing kits available during Orientation Week
Wendy Allison said it was “about time universities stepped up” and used their own spectrometers to give students better access to testing services. Five student associations said they welcomed the prospect of drug testing at upcoming orientation weeks, but only one – the Otago University Students’ Association – was able to do so. […]
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Will pill testing be on the Groovin’ lineup this year?
“The ACT Government does not condone the use of illicit drugs, we know the safest option is to not take drugs,” Health Minister Stephen-Smith said. “However, we also believe governments have a responsibility to not only try to prevent drug use but also to support initiatives that reduce the harms…
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Loved ones unite in Family Drug Support group
Since 1997 Family Drug Support has built and developed a model for supporting families impacted by a family member’s alcohol or other drug issues by listening and talking to thousands of families and undertaking focus testing of their programs. “We advocate for harm minimisation as a oppose to zero tolerance,…