The push for pill testing is being felt throughout the music industry after Canberra’s Groovin The Moo festival’s first on-site pill testing scheme was deemed a success by organisers. Despite this and despite being asked in an open letter signed by industry giants such as MusicNSW, Chugg Entertainment, Secret Sounds and more to consider pill testing it was not considered…

Following the ACT trial, Edith Cowan University researcher Stephen Bright said the state government needed to seriously consider a pill test trial in WA. “I think there are so many new substances entering the market … from the conversations I’ve had with people, with consumers here in Perth so far it appears that the market sort of varies and sometimes…

Of course, there is still much work to do. But in this reactionary time, advocates for sustainable and humane drug policies­, centered on harm reduction, human rights, and sustainable development, have joined together to provide a common defense and to continue building on the progress made to date. The Global Drug Policy Program has been honored to be a part…

The evidence for harm reduction services is overwhelming. They keep people alive, are cost-effective, and foster healthier, safer communities. It is shameful that these facts are ignored by many. Until prejudice and fear stop ruling when it comes to drug policy, our health will continue to be undermined. […]

Greens Senator for Queensland, Larissa Waters said it’s “high time” for Australia to legalise the drug and we’ll risk being “getting left behind” in the world if we don’t act soon. […]

A study conducted earlier this year by the NZ Drug Foundation found that two-thirds of New Zealanders support the legalization of cannabis for recreational use. “These results show that New Zealanders are ready for a future under which cannabis is regulated,” said Ross Bell, executive director at the foundation. “People realise that the way we’re currently dealing with cannabis isn’t…

The poll follows the death of a young man at a Sydney music festival this month. A further two lives were lost at another music festival in Sydney in September. ‘Pill testing saves lives – that’s the bottom line,’ Dr Hester Wilson, GP and Chair of the RACGP Specific Interests Addiction Medicine network, told newsGP. […]

Despite concern about pill testing increasing the appeal of illicit substances, research shows it can lead to less drug taking, and help people consume drugs in a safer way. “What’s clear from the results of the services operating [in Europe] is that people make different choices based on the results of the testing — some choose to put their drugs…

As the drug war in the Philippines becomes politicised, it is no longer just a war against women. It has also become a war among women. A UN Women Policy brief shows that women are involved in high-risk tasks in the drug trade but are paid much lower than men. In Mexico, media reports indicate a staggering increase of murdered women. […]

Re-elected MP Fiona Patten has put drug law reform at the top of her political agenda by introducing a bill to legalise marijuana in Victoria, which she hopes will gain the support of the new Parliament. Ms Patten wants cannabis legalised so that it can be cultivated and manufactured while subject to regulation. […]