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1995 1996 1997 1998 1999

1995 DeathofLeahBetts(age18).Becauseofthe‘Sorted’campaign,hersbecameoneofthemosthighlypublicisedMDMA-relateddeaths.

1995DelegatesattendingtheACPONationalDrugsConferencerecommendedincreasingtheprovisionofmobileandoutreachneedleandsyringeprogrammes(NSPs)toserviceruralareas.

1996ACPONationalDrugsConferencedelegatescalledforsection9AoftheMisuseofDrugsAct(MDA)1971tobeamendedtoallowdrugservicestosupplyinjectingparaphernalia(e.g.swabs,sterilewater,filters)todruginjectors.

1995LaunchofThe National Treatment Outcome Research Study(NTORS),astudycarriedoutbytheNationalAddictionCentreinEnglandandWalesbetweentheyears1995and2000–thelargestUKdrugtreatmentoutcomestudy.

1996TheDepartmentofHealthTaskForcetoReviewServicesforDrugMisuserspublisheditsReport of an Independent Review of Drug Treatment Services in England.Thereporthighlightedtheneedfordrugtreatmenttobeassessedagainstasetofoutcomemeasures.1995

PublicationofTackling Drugs Together: A strategy for England 1995-1998. Thestrategyhadthesekeystrands:• Increasethesafetyofcommunities

fromdrug-relatedcrime;• Reducetheacceptabilityand

availabilityofdrugstoyoungpeople;• Reducethehealthrisksandother

damagerelatedtodrugmisuse.Thegovernmentalsoannounceditsintentiontocreate:• LocalDrugActionTeams(DATs);• DrugReferenceGroups(DRGs)to

provideasourceoflocalexpertisetoDATs.

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Concludingourtwo-parttimeline,takingusuptodate.CompiledbyHarry ShapiroandGeoff Monaghan.

UK DRUG SCENE TIMELINE: 1995–2014

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1995 1996 1997 1998 1999

1999Peakyearforestimatedtotalpopulationofheroin/crackusersataround450,000–withonlyaround50,000intreatment.

1999EnglishandWelshArresteeDrugAbuseMonitoring(NEW-ADAM)Programmewasestablishedtoresearchthelevelsofdrugmisuseamongarresteesrelyingoninterviewingandvoluntarydrugtesting.

1999Reducingdrug-relateddeathsbecameatargetwithintheNationalDrugsStrategy.

1997AppointmentofUKAnti-DrugsCoordinator(akatheDrugCzar),KeithHellawell(formerChiefConstableofWestYorkshirePolice)andhisDeputy,MikeTrace,toheaduptheAnti-DrugsCoordinationUnit(ADCU).

1998TheLabourGovernmentlaunchedits10-yeardrugsstrategyTackling Drugs to Build a Better Britain. Thestrategyhadfourelements:• Youngpeople;• Communities;• Treatment;• Availability.

AdvisoryCouncilontheMisuseofDrugs(ACMD)publishedDrug Misuse and the Environment–thefirstofficialdocumenttopubliclyacknowledgethelinkbetweendruguseanddeprivation.

1997Crime (Sentences) Act 1997Introducedaminimumsentenceof7years’imprisonmentfollowingathirdconvictionforadrugtraffickingoffenceinvolvingaClassAdrug.

1990s

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2000 2001 2002 2003 2004

2000PMAfirstdetectedintabletssoldas‘ecstasy’. 2001

ForensicScienceServicenotedthatdatafrompoliceandCustomsheroinseizuresshowedthat–unlikecocaine–thepurityofheroinwasalmostidentical.Thisstronglysuggestedthatheroinwasnotbeing‘cut’atstreetlevel.

2000TheNationalIntelligenceModel(NIM),pilotedintheearly1990s,wasrolledouttolawenforcementagenciesacrosstheUK.

2001TheMetropolitanPoliceService(MPS)LambethCannabisWarningScheme(LCWS)wasintroducedasasixmonthpilotproject.Thosefoundinpossessionofsmallquantitiesofcannabisfortheirpersonaluse:(i)hadthedrugsconfiscated;(ii)weregivenawarning–amodificationofexistingMPSandACPOguidance.

2000DrugTreatmentandTestingOrders(DTTOs)introduced.

2001AuditCommissionreportChanging Habitshighlycriticalofthetreatmentsystem.

TheNationalTreatmentAgencyforSubstanceMisuse(NTA)wasestablishedtoimprovetheavailability,capacityandeffectivenessofdrugtreatment.

2000ACMDpublishedReducing Drug Related Deaths.

TheIndependentInquiryintotheMisuseofDrugsActpublisheditsreport:Drugs and the Law (alsoknownastheRuncimanReport).Thereportmade81recommendations,including:• TheclassificationofdrugsintheMDA

shouldbereviewedtotakeaccountofmoderndevelopmentsinmedical,sociologicalandscientificknowledge;

• Section9(offencesrelatingtoopium)and9A(offencesrelatingtosupplyof‘drugparaphernalia’)shouldberepealed;

• Thepossessionofcannabisshouldnotbeanimprisonableoffence.

2001TheHomeOfficepublishedMiddle market drug distribution.

Thereportwasinfluentialamonglawenforcementofficersandtriggeredin-serviceadditionalresearchintodrugpricesandpurity,theidentificationof‘middlemarket’traffickersandledtothecreationofspecialistunitstotacklemiddlemarkettraffickers.

2000‘Wintercomfortcase’.TwocharityworkersfromCambridgeconvictedofallowingpremisestobeusedforthesupplyofheroin.Theirconvictionswereupheldonappeal,howevertheirappealsagainstsentencewereallowed.

2001CriminalJusticeandCourtServicesAct(CJCSA)2000amendedthePoliceandCriminalEvidence(PACE)Act1984toallowforthetakingofasampleofurineoranon-intimatesamplefromapersoninpolicedetentionforthepurposeofascertainingwhethers/hehasanyspecifiedClassAdruginhis/herbody.

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2000 2001 2002 2003 2004

2004StartofUKheroinprescribingtrial.

2002TheHouseofCommonsHomeAffairsCommittee(HAC)publishedThe Government’s Drug Policy: Is It Working?Therecommendationsincluded:• CannabistobereclassifiedtoC;• EcstasytobereclassifiedtoB;• Anewoffenceof‘supplyforgain’to

distinguishitfromsocialsupply;• Pilotstudyondrugconsumption

rooms.

TheGovernment’sUpdated Drug Strategy waslaunched.Itsmeasuresincluded:• A‘tougherfocusonClassAdrugs’;• Furtherexpansionoftreatment

services;• ANationalCrackActionPlan.

TheACMDpublisheditsreportThe Classification of Cannabis under the Misuse of Drugs Act 1971. TheACMDrecommendedthereclassificationofallcannabispreparationsfromClassBtoClassC.

KeithHellawellresignedas‘DrugCzar’ostensiblyoverdecisiontoreclassifycannabis.ButtheAnti-DrugsCoordinationUnithadalreadybeenabolishedin2001andcontrolofthedrugstrategypassedbacktotheHomeOffice.

2003TheACMDpublished Hidden Harm: Responding to the needs of children of problem drug users.

2002Proceeds of Crime Act 2002 TheActprovidedfortheconfiscationorcivilrecoveryoftheproceedsfromcrimeandcontainedtheprincipalmoneylaunderinglegislationintheUK.

AcaseundertheEuropeanConventiononHumanRightsdecidedthat:Arighttoprivatelifedidnotinvolveorincludearighttoselfintoxication,northerighttopossessionorcultivationofcannabis,whetherforpersonalconsumptionwithinone’shomeorotherwise.

2003Anti-Social Behaviour Act (ASBA) 2003 TheASBAenabledthepoliceandlocalauthoritiestodealwith‘crackhouses’.

Misuse of Drugs (Amendment) (No.2) Regulations 2003 Madeprovisionforlawfulprovisionofarangeofarticles(e.g.citricacid,swabsandfilters)toinjectingdrugusers.

4-Hydroxy-n-butyricacid(commonlyknownas‘GHB’[gamma-Hydroxybutyricacid]controlledasaClassCdrug.

2004CannabisreclassifiedfromClassBtoClassC.

CustomsandExciseattemptedtolevyVATonretailersof‘magicmushrooms’.

2000s

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2005 2006 2007 2008 2009

2006April:TheSeriousOrganisedCrimeAgency(SOCA)becameoperational.

2005Serious Organised Crime and Police Act (SOCPA) 2005

Section1ofSOCPAestablishedtheSeriousOrganisedCrimeAgency(SOCA).Drugs Act 2005 AmendedPACE1984inrelationtointimatedrugsearchesandenabledthepolicetotakeX-raysandultrasoundscanstodetectthepresenceofClassAdrugs.AlsoamendedtheMDA1971toincludefungicontainingpsilocinasaClassAdrug.

2006KetamineiscontrolledasaClassCdrug.

HomeOfficepublishedplantointroducethresholdquantitiestodistinguish‘possession’from‘possessionwithintenttosupply’.However,afterwidespreadconsultation,theplanisshelved.

2006BBCclaimsofanineffectivetreatmentsystemkickstartamajordebateinthesectorconcerningtherelativemeritsofharmreductionvabstinenceandhowthesectorshouldaddresstheissueoftreatmentoutcomesandthedefinitionofrecovery.

Publicationofnewclinicalguidelinesfortreatingdrugdependency.

2006TheHouseofCommonsScienceandTechnologyCommitteepublishedDrug Classification: Making a Hash of It?

ThereportconcludedthattheclassificationsystemundertheMDAwasnotfitforpurpose.

Havingbeenaskedtolookatcannabisagain,ACMDrecommendedcontinuationofcannabisasaClassCdrug.

HomeOfficerejectedJosephRowntreeFoundationrecommendationonestablishingpilotsfordrugconsumptionrooms.

TheACMDpublisheditsreportPathways to Problems: Hazardous use of tobacco, alcohol and other drugs by young people in the UK and its implications for policy.

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2000s

2005FirstarticleinDruglinkabout‘herbalhighs’.

FirstnewsiteminDruglinkaboutcrystalmethonthegayscene.

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2005 2006 2007 2008 2009

2009ACPOissuedguidanceonthepolicingresponsetopossessionofcannabisandcannabisresinforpersonaluse.Theenforcementmodelisasfollows:• Firstoffence:‘cannabiswarning’

issued;• Secondoffence:£80PenaltyNoticefor

Disorder;• Furtherpossessionoffences:Arrest

forpossessionofacontrolledclassBdrug.

2007KetamineiscontrolledasaClassCdrug.MethylamphetaminereclassifiedfromClassBtoClassA.

2007TheindependentUKDrugPolicyCommission(UKDPC)wassetupto‘provideobjectiveanalysisoftheevidenceconcerningdrugpolicyandpractice’.

TheRoyalSocietyofArtspublisheditsdrugcommissionreportwhoseheadlineconclusionswere:• MisuseofDrugsActnotfitforpurpose;• Drugstrategyleadshouldpass

fromHomeOfficetoDepartmentofCommunitiesandLocalGovernment.

2008ReviseddrugstrategypublishedDrugs: protecting families and communities.

ACMDrecommended–andgovernmentaccepted–controlof15additionalanabolicsteroids.

2009TheACMDpublishedThe Primary Prevention of Hepatitis C Among Injecting Drug Users.

ProfessorDavidNuttdismissedasChairoftheACMD.

2007FirstarticleinDruglinkaboutcannabis‘farms’.

Druglinkstreetdrugsurveyhighlightedtheexistenceofatwo-tiermarketincocaine.

2009OutbreakofanthraxamongheroinusersinScotland.

2009CannabisreclassifiedfromClassCtoClassB.

FirstNPS(Legalhighs)controlled–BZPandSpice.

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2010 2011 2012 2013 2014

20104-Methylmethcathinone(popularlyknownasMephedrone)controlledasaClassBdrug.

2011Police Reform and Social Responsibility Act (PRSRA) 2011Section151ofthePRSRAinsertedsection2AintotheMDA1971whichallowsforspecifiedsubstancestobeplacedina‘temporaryclass’.

2010TheCoalitionGovernmentpublisheditsdrugstrategy:Reducing demand, restricting supply, building recovery: supporting people to live a drug-free life.Thestrategyhastwooverarchingaims:• Reduceillicitandotherharmfuldrug

use;• Increasethenumbersrecoveringfrom

theirdependence.

ACMDfirstrecommendedthattreatmentservicesshouldbeallowedtolegallydistributefoil.Threeyearslater,thegovernmentfinallyagreed.

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2010HeroindroughtintheUK.

2011Figurespublishedfor2009-2010revealseriousoutbreakofanthraxamongScottishheroininjectorsandsmokers.

HealthProtectionScotland(HPS)saidtherewere119casesofanthraxandatotalof14deathsduringtheoutbreak.

Bycomparisonwithsamefiguresfrom1999,totalheroin/crackpopulationdownto250,000withabout150,00intreatment.

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2010 2011 2012 2013 2014

2013TheNationalCrimeAgency(NCA)becameoperational,replacingtheSeriousOrganisedCrimeAgency.

2014Thedayafterthelegislationcameintoforce,policeinHounslow,westLondon,werethefirstinLondontoissuea‘khatwarning’anda‘khat£60penaltynotice’.

2013Crime and Courts Act 2013 TheActcreatedanewoffenceofdriving,orbeinginachargeof,amotorvehiclewithconcentrationsofspecifiedcontrolleddrugsinexcessofspecifiedlevels.

2014KhatcontrolledasaClassCdrug.

2013NTAfoldedintothenewlycreatedPublicHealthEngland

2012TheACMDpublisheditsreport:Novel psychoactive substances.

TheUKDPCpublisheditsfinalreportA Fresh Approach to Drugs • Thereisawidespreadviewthatcurrent

drugpolicyisnotworkingwell;• Newchallengesareputtingfurther

pressureontheabilityofexistingdrugpoliciestoreducetheharmthatdrugusecancause;

• Evidence-basedapproachescanprovideamoreeffectivepolicythatoffersbettervalueformoney.

2013TheACMDpublishedKetamine: a review of use and harm.TheACMDrecommendedthatketaminebecontrolledundertheMDAasaClassBdrug.

2014ACMDRecoveryCommitteerejectstheideasoftime-limitedtreatment.

2010s