Beyond politics

The regulation of drugs – including alcohol and tobacco – is an issue of pressing importance due to the increasing health care costs associated with their use and the new sorts of synthetic agents being developed and sold over the internet. Also the impact of the law to impede research and treatment innovation is of growing concern.

My talk will reflect on these issues in the light of my ten years’ experience on the governments Advisory Council on the Misuse of Drugs from which I was sacked two years ago. I shall present new analyses that compare the harms of drugs and alcohol using more sophisticated methodology and challenge many of the current misconceptions about drugs – their harms – and how to deal with them.

Reading - Drugs without the Hot Air – UIT press