Encouraging a ‘generational shift’ in the UKs relationship with drugs. A commentary on the new UK drug strategy. What can be achieved with drug prevention?

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Sumnall, H (2022) Encouraging a ‘generational shift’ in the UKs relationship with drugs. A commentary on the new UK drug strategy. What can be achieved with drug prevention? International Journal of Drug Policy, 109. ISSN 0955-3959

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Open Access URL: https://doi.org/10.1016/j.drugpo.2022.103841 (Published version)

Abstract

The UK Government's recent 10-year Drug Strategy, From Harm to Hope (the Strategy), presents an ambition to “achieve a generational shift in the country's relationship with drugs and to reduce overall drug use towards a historic 30-year low” through “bold steps to change attitudes in society around the perceived acceptability of illegal drug use” (H.M. Government, 2021a). In this commentary, I focus on the potential impacts of drug prevention activity outlined in the Strategy and consider the feasibility of achieving this headline outcome considering constraints on UK prevention systems. Here, drug prevention is defined as those policies, programmes and practices intended to reduce the initiation, continuation, and escalation of drug use (Sloboda & Petras, 2014). Whilst prevention is relevant across the life course and different profiles of substance use (ACMD, 2015), this commentary primarily focuses on young (aged < 25) “non-dependent, so-called recreational drug users” who report the highest rates of drug use (H.M. Government, 2021a, p. 4).

Item Type: Article
Uncontrolled Keywords: Substance Abuse; 11 Medical and Health Sciences; 16 Studies in Human Society; 17 Psychology and Cognitive Sciences
Subjects: R Medicine > RA Public aspects of medicine
R Medicine > RA Public aspects of medicine > RA0421 Public health. Hygiene. Preventive Medicine
Divisions: Public and Allied Health
Publisher: Elsevier
Date of acceptance: 21 August 2022
Date of first compliant Open Access: 30 August 2022
Date Deposited: 30 Aug 2022 08:56
Last Modified: 30 Aug 2022 09:15
DOI or ID number: 10.1016/j.drugpo.2022.103841
URI: https://researchonline.ljmu.ac.uk/id/eprint/17458
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