Despite their high cost, welfare drug testing programs are popping up in new states across the US. The proponents argue they save money, identify and help people struggling with substance abuse, and ensure welfare money isn’t subsidising an illegal act. But critics point out there’s little evidence this is the best way to use resources, and the programs are really…

A powerful Think-tank – Australia 21 – which consists out of former police deputies, college professors, and backed by former prime ministers from both sides of the Australian aisle, brainstormed on how to approach their drug problem. As reported by The Guardian, the former Labor Premier of New South Wales, Bob Carr, and the former Liberal Victoria premier, Jeff Kennett, launched…

Roundtable report of law enforcement and other practitioners, researchers and advocates. Sydney, September 2015 […]

The case for a fundamental change in Australia’s drug strategy has been rendered even more compelling by the release of a report by some of the nation’s most well-informed people about a policy failure that continues to cause countless unnecessary deaths. […]

The Australian government’s current approach to the ice epidemic is only “digging a deeper hole” and progressive policy is needed, say two drug addiction experts. A “harsh” approach is not just ineffective but counter-productive, Dr Matthew Frei and Dr Alex Wodak write in the Medical Journal of Australia. […]

Thousands of Catholic faithful gathered in the Philippine capital in a “show of force” today to protest against the extrajudicial killings in President Rodrigo Duterte’s anti-drug war. The rally, called the “Walk for Life”, gathered 20,000 people, according to the organisers. […]

We need to decriminalise the personal use of drugs so people with problematic drug use are able to engage with our health services rather than hide for fear of prosecution. We must establish and build upon the innovative lifesaving programs that we know already work well — programs such as heroin prescription, injecting facilities and easier access to treatment to name…

What (we) don’t need is the ABC piling even more pressure on them with stories and interviews that are ethically and factually questionable. The focus on the extreme individual situations in these programmes are likely to fill families with despair rather than hope. We have witnessed many successful treatment outcomes from ice and this needs to be included in any realistic…

Read a joint submission from Harm Reduction Australia (HRA), Students for Sensible Drug Policy Australia (SSDP) and the International Drug Policy Consortium (IDPC) to the Parliamentary Joint Committee on Law Enforcement Inquiry into Crystal Methamphetamine. […]

Melbourne University’s student union will provide free drug testing kits for students who want to ensure their party drugs are what they are supposed to be. […]