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Collective Voice calls for government position statement on treatment
The government should publish a position statement on drug and alcohol treatment services to reaffirm its commitment to reducing harms and maximising recovery, says Collective Voice.
The campaigning charity has outlined five key steps it wants to see in relation to treatment and recovery services in England. Alongside a clear position statement, the government must restore the five-year programme of ring-fenced funding recommend ed by Dame Carol Black, and ensure that residential treatment is an accessible option in every part of the country – instead of the current‘ postcode lottery’.
The government also needs to develop a fully-resourced plan to deliver the recommendations of former justice secretary David Gauke’ s sentencing review, it says, and make sure that prison substance use services are commissioned directly with the provider – and separately from other health services – to help ensure appropriate pathways are in place from prison to community and residential settings.
SEIZURES OF KETAMINE AND CANNABIS by the Border Force reached an all-time high in the year to March 2025, according to Home Office figures. Overall, almost 150 tonnes of illegal drugs were seized, 40 per cent up on the previous year and the largest amount since records began.
Border Force and police forces intercepted drugs on almost 270,000 occasions, a 24 per cent increase on the previous year, including more than 60,000 seizures of cannabis and almost 24,000 seizures of cocaine.
Treatment and recovery support need to be‘ at the heart of the government’ s thinking and action on criminal justice and health, as well as other areas of policy including education, employment, housing and beyond’, it says.
‘ The situation could not be more urgent,’ said chief executive Will Haydock.‘ We are seeing the highest rates of drug-related deaths ever recorded and the emergence of synthetic opioids in the UK has prompted the National Crime Agency to warn that“ there has never been a more dangerous time to take drugs”. A strategy with clear priorities is needed to drive change. But over a year into the government’ s tenure, there remains a lack of clarity in how their missions will be achieved, and the role of substance use treatment in achieving this.’
Organisations had responded‘ promptly, effectively and efficiently’ to the Dame Carol Black review and the subsequent drug strategy, he continued, with more people in treatment and‘ vastly improved’ continuity of care between prison and community.‘ Where the previous government sought to move From harm to hope, the
Ketamine seizures increased by 55 per cent to 1.3 tonnes, while there was a more than 2,000 per cent increase in nitrous oxide seizures, following the banning of the substance as a class C drug in November 2023. The total value of drugs seized was £ 2.6bn, the Home Office says. All classes of drugs saw an increase in the number of seizures, with class A seizures up by 8 per cent, class B by almost 30 per cent and class C by nearly 40 per cent. Cannabis seizures increased by 28 per cent, with
' Over a year into the government’ s tenure, there remains a lack of clarity in how their missions will be achieved.'
WILL HAYDOCK
government must now progress from hope to delivery,’ he stated. From hope to delivery: Five essential next steps for government action on alcohol and other drugs at www. collectivevoice. org. uk
Ketamine seizures at all-time high
the drug remaining the most seized substance, followed by powder cocaine.
Organised crime gangs are increasingly using expensive equipment to conceal drugs‘ in the hope that law enforcement will be deterred by the potential costs involved with destroying it’, the Home Office states, with one gang hiding a tonne of cocaine in two industrial generators valued at £ 720,000.
Seizures of drugs in England and Wales, financial year ending 2025 at www. gov. uk
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GAME ON An independent lived experience organisation has been set up to take the annual Recovery Games‘ into the future’, says Doncaster-based Aspire Drug and Alcohol Service.‘ The time is now right for it to move to where it should properly reside – within the recovery community,’ said chief executive Tim Young.
GETTING BETTER Better Days Bolton is a new service led by Waythrough in partnership with Community Led Initiatives CIC that will‘ take a whole community approach’ to recovery.‘ We know that people and their problems don’ t fit into neatly labelled boxes,’ said Waythrough’ s North West director of services, Rachel Savchenko. Contact info @ betterdaysbolton. org. uk.
VISIBLE RECOVERY An 8ft hand-carved wooden sculpture created by members of the local recovery community has been officially unveiled by Newcastle mayor Cllr Henry Gallagher.‘ Newcastle is making great strides forward to make recovery accessible, so the significance of this sculpture cannot be underestimated,’ he said.‘ Congratulations to all involved.’ collectivevoice. org. uk
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