Observer drug report for the UK

July 8, 2005

http://www.guardian.co.uk/drugs/0,2759,178206,00.html

Latest

Revealed: how drugs war failedJuly 5: Low seizure rates give traffickers vast profits from £4bn a year business, says report ministers refuse to publish.

Heroin convictions quashedJuly 5: Five men had their convictions for buying heroin quashed because of failure to disclose vital information about the relationships between Customs and Excise officers and informants.

Government reports

Secret report says war on hard drugs has failedJuly 3: A secret Downing Street report on crack and heroin, suppressed by ministers, has discovered that the government's war on drugs has failed.

Alexander Shulgin

The ecstasy manJune 17: He is the creator of MDMA as well as 200 other psychedelic compounds - and now that research is showing the health benefits of the 'rave drug', his reputation is being restored. Dan Glaister pays a visit to Alexander Shulgin's laboratory.

Prisons

From a Bangkok cell to Oxford finals ...June 12: Had she not been shown clemency by the King of Thailand, Sandra Gregory would still be behind bars. Instead, the convicted heroin smuggler has just completed a geography degree at Oxford.

Inquest hears of prison drug passJune 11: An inquest jury was yesterday shown prison security camera footage which appeared to record a visitor passing a package - thought to contain drugs - to his brother, an inmate at Full Sutton maximum security jail near York.

Cannabis

Cannabis spray for MS patients refused licenceJune 11: A cannabis-based medicine which had excited the hopes of many multiple sclerosis patients has been refused a licence.

Electricity men grass on drug farmsJune 11: Investigators from an energy company looking into electricity theft have led the police to almost 50 cannabis-growing farms in British homes so far this year.

Home-grow kits fuel cannabis boomMay 29: An explosion in the amount of cannabis grown in people's homes has alarmed senior police officers, with some forces reporting a sixfold increase in seizures. Home-grown cannabis now accounts for more than half of all consumption in the UK. 23.05.05: Cannabis use linked to risk of osteoporosis

Drugs and crime

Police war on hard drugs faltersJune 19: Fewer heroin and cocaine dealers are arrested since cannabis downgrade.

Customs man was Mr Big of cocaine gangJune 18: Corrupt official jailed for 15 years after admitting conspiracy to smuggle drugs through Gatwick.

Shroom fans can carry on trippingJune 18: Law banning sale of psychedelic fungi will not come into affect until July.

Ruthless, rich and bloody: now Europe's most vicious drug lords target BritainJune 12: Exploiting their links to Colombian suppliers, rival gangs entrenched in Spain's Galicia region are aiming to smuggle vast amounts of cocaine and cannabis into the UK, report Tony Thompson and Giles Tremlett.

Britons arrested in £22m hashish seizure at seaJune 7: Seven people, including five Britons, were arrested after a fishing boat carrying £22m worth of hashish was seized off the coast of Spain, authorities said today. 06.06.05: UK Customs praised for drugs sting01.06.05: Britons held over big cocaine haul28.05.05: Drug factory gang member jailed26.05.05: Dawn raids mark crash of online designer drugs trade26.05.05: A psychonaut gets caught24.05.05: SAS-trained hitman jailed for life20.05.05: Lorry driver returns to Spanish jail20.05.05: Law change impractical - Met chief20.05.05, leader: Best left to the experts20.05.05, letters: Confusion on drugs19.05.05: Skunk cannabis may be reclassified18.05.05, Mark Honigsbaum: Mushroom cloud

Alcohol

Pubs call time on happy hourMay 23: More than half of Britain's pubs banned happy hour promotions today in a bid to combat binge drinking and antisocial behaviour.

Drugs legislation

Last orders for magic mushroom enthusiastsJune 25: Government announces that clause 21 of the Drugs Act 2005, reclassifying psilocybe mushrooms as a class A drug alongside heroin and crack cocaine, will come into force on July 18.

Government moves to control ketamineMay 30: The government is proposing tougher controls on a horse tranquilliser, amid growing evidence that the powerful anaesthetic ketamine is becoming the preferred drug for a new generation of clubbers.

Explained

Q & A: Reclassifying cannabisJanuary 29: Cannabis has been reclassified as the government tries to cut the amount of time police spend dealing with petty crime. Simon Jeffery explains. Q & A: the drugs billQ & A: What is cannabis?Q & A: UK drug laws

Government drugs strategy

Updated drugs strategy 2002 (pdf)Updated drug strategy 2002 - what's new (pdf)Updated drug strategy 2002 - executive summary (pdf)