Asked by: Crispin Blunt (Independent - Reigate)
Question to the Home Office:
To ask the Secretary of State for the Home Department, pursuant to the Answer of 27 May 2020 to Question 6165 on Drugs: Misuse, what the evidential basis is for suggestion that drug consumption clinics encourage drug use; what assessment she has made of the consistency of her policy on drug consumption clinics with the findings of the reports entitled (a) Reducing opioid-related deaths in the UK, published by the Advisory Council on the Misuse of Drugs in December 2016 and (b) What is the current evidence for the efficacy of drug consumption rooms?, published by Public Health England in March 2019, that there was no evidence that drug consumption clinics increase drug use; and what her policy is on evidence-based approaches to reduce the health-related harms of drug misuse.
Answered by Kit Malthouse
Drug Consumption Rooms are not legal in the UK. A range of crimes would be committed in the course of running such a facility, by both service users and staff, such as possession of a controlled drug, being concerned in the supply of a controlled drug, knowingly permitting the supply of a controlled drug on a premises or encouraging or assisting these and other offences.
The Government is aware of the differing views on Drug Consumption Rooms and that they are subject to much debate. We will give due consideration to any new evidence on the harms and benefits of Drug Consumption Rooms including the extent to which they condone or encourage drug use or otherwise.
We continue to support a range of evidence-based approaches to reduce the health-related harms of drug misuse, such as maintaining the availability of needle and syringe programmes to prevent blood borne infections and widening the availability of naloxone to prevent overdose deaths. Heroin assisted treatment is also an option open to local areas under the existing legal framework subject to obtaining the relevant licences from the Home Office.
The Government is focused on improving the quality of, and access to, drug treatment services to support individuals to recover and turn their lives around. That is why, on 20 January the Government announced £148 million of new investment to cut crime and protect people from the scourge of illegal drugs. This package includes £80 million for drug treatment services across England, which represents the largest increase in drug treatment funding for 15 years.
Asked by: Crispin Blunt (Independent - Reigate)
Question to the Home Office:
To ask the Secretary of State for the Home Department, pursuant to the Answer of 7 June 2021 to Question 8523, when the Crime and Justice Task Force superseded the Drug Strategy Board; whether information on Task Force meetings will be publicly available; how many meetings have included drug strategy on the agenda since the Task Force superseded the Drug Strategy Board; and who was in attendance at each of those meetings.
Answered by Kit Malthouse
The Crime and Justice Task Force was established in January 2020. It is a long-established precedent that information about the discussions that have taken place in Cabinet and its Committees, and how often they have met, is not normally shared publicly.
Asked by: Crispin Blunt (Independent - Reigate)
Question to the Home Office:
To ask the Secretary of State for the Home Department, pursuant to the Answer of 26 May 2021 to Question 5143 what the total cost is of Operation Venetic to date; and how she plans to evaluate the cost-effectiveness of Operation Venetic when no assessment has been conducted of the short-term and long-term impact to drug availability or demand in the UK.
Answered by Kit Malthouse
Op VENETIC had a major impact on Organised Crime Groups involved in drugs trafficking, firearms trafficking, serious violence and money laundering. Many suspects that would otherwise have evaded justice due to their use of this criminally dedicated secure communication system are now facing prosecution for serious offences and face losing the financial benefits of organised crime due to proceeds of crime investigations.
The operation has also made a significant contribution to the knowledge and understanding of Serious Organised Crime in the UK, how it operates and its vulnerabilities, which is assisting law enforcement operations going forwards.
Whilst it is not possible to define an overall cost for this complex, large scale multi agency operation, over £56 million in criminal cash has so far been seized as a result of this operation.
Asked by: Crispin Blunt (Independent - Reigate)
Question to the Home Office:
To ask the Secretary of State for the Home Department, pursuant to the Answer of 26 May 2021 to Question 5140, how the Government plans to assess the (a) effectiveness and (b) value for money of enforcement activity in circumstances where no evaluation framework has been developed for the 2017 Drug Strategy.
Answered by Kit Malthouse
This Government is taking a whole-system response to tackling drug misuse. That is why we have committed £148m this year to cut drug-related crime and support people into recovery, this includes £40m for disrupting drug supply and county lines, £80m for drug treatment and a further £28m for Project ADDER (Addiction, Disruption, Diversion, Enforcement and Recovery).
We have robust arrangements in place to oversee delivery of this work including outcomes framework which is monitored through a cross government Drugs Misuse Delivery Board.
In addition, on enforcement specifically, we have robust governance and monitoring/evaluation frameworks in place to monitor the impact of our county lines programme and Project ADDER through monthly Task and Finish Group meetings and Programme Delivery Board.
We will continue to monitor and evaluate our drugs misuse programmes to learn what is most effective in combatting drug misuse and will continue to work together across Government Departments on this.
Asked by: Crispin Blunt (Independent - Reigate)
Question to the Home Office:
To ask the Secretary of State for the Home Department, pursuant to the Answer of 20 May 2021 to Question 2169, what assessment she has made of the implications for her policies of the Crime and Justice Taskforce membership not including representation from the (a) Department of Health and Social Care, (b) Department for Education, (c) Department of Work and Pensions, or (d) Ministry for Housing, Communities and Local Government, unlike its predecessor, the Drug Strategy Board.
Answered by Kit Malthouse
The membership of the Crime and Justice Task Force is available at Gov.uk. Other Cabinet Ministers will be invited to attend according to the agenda.
Asked by: Crispin Blunt (Independent - Reigate)
Question to the Home Office:
To ask the Secretary of State for the Home Department, pursuant to the Answer 20 May 2021 to Question 2168, what the evidential basis is for psilocybin being a Class A, Schedule 1 controlled drug; and whether there are other controlled drugs where no analysis or no recent analysis of harm has been conducted.
Answered by Kit Malthouse
The Government has not commissioned or published any recent analysis of the harms of psilocybin. Psilocybin, as an “ester of psilocin”, is controlled as a Class A drug under the Misuse of Drugs Act 1971 (the 1971 Act) and is placed in Schedule 1 to the Misuse of Drugs Regulations 2001. Psilocin is also subject to the United Nations Convention on Psychotropic Substances of 1971, to which the United Kingdom is signatory.
A number of drugs which have been controlled under the 1971 Act for a considerable period of time have not been subject to analysis or recent analysis of harm. However, there is not an exhaustive list of such drugs. The Advisory Council on the Misuse of Drugs regularly provides advice on substances, and these are published on the gov.uk website. Recent assessments and reviews include: gamma-hydroxybutyric acid and related substances; fentanyls; novel benzodiazepines; Sunosi; synthetic cannabinoid receptor agonists; and cannabis-based products for medicinal use.
Asked by: Crispin Blunt (Independent - Reigate)
Question to the Home Office:
To ask the Secretary of State for the Home Department, with reference to the report by the Advisory Council on the Misuse of Drugs entitled Reducing opioid-related deaths in the UK, published in December 2016, which cited research findings that drug consumption clinics reduce injecting risk behaviours and overdose fatalities and save more money than they cost, on what basis she has decided not to introduce a legal framework for the provision of those clinics; and what assessment she has made of the compatibility of that decision with aims of the Drugs Strategy 2017 to reduce the harms of drugs as part of a balanced approach to tackling drug misuse.
Answered by Kit Malthouse
The Government has no plans to change the law on drug consumption rooms. While the UK Government continues to support a range of evidence-based approaches to reduce the health-related harms of drug misuse, we must not do anything that encourages the consumption of drugs. Our policy on drugs is clear – we must prevent drug use in our communities and support people through treatment and recovery. In order to ensure we do all we can to tackle the harms drug misuse causes, Dame Carol Black is leading an independent review, part two of which focuses on treatment and recovery support for people substance misuse problems.
Asked by: Crispin Blunt (Independent - Reigate)
Question to the Home Office:
To ask the Secretary of State for the Home Department, pursuant to the Answer of 29 September 2020 to Question 92900 on Drugs: Smuggling, what assessment her Department has made of the (a) short-term and (b) long-term effects of Operation VENETIC on the (i) availability, (ii) price and (iii) purity of drugs in the illegal drugs market since the date of that answer.
Answered by Kit Malthouse
UK law enforcement continue to act on the significant volume of intelligence Operation VENETIC generated, with the National Crime Agency (NCA) acting as the lead organisation in the UK on this.
The Home Office has not made an assessment of the effects of Operation VENETIC on the illegal drugs market. The NCA has led a number of investigations under Operation VENETIC and publish regular press notices on the outcomes of these investigations. The NCA’s 2021 National Strategic Assessment includes further information about the outcomes of activity following Operation VENETIC file (nationalcrimeagency.gov.uk)
Asked by: Crispin Blunt (Independent - Reigate)
Question to the Home Office:
To ask the Secretary of State for the Home Department, with reference to the Government report entitled An evaluation of the Government’s Drug Strategy 2010 which reported the finding that drugs market violence is an unintended consequence of enforcing drug laws, for what reason that finding was not tackled in the Drug Strategy 2017; and what steps the Government is taking to (a) monitor and (b) evaluate the ongoing effects of enforcement on market violence in the UK.
Answered by Kit Malthouse
No evaluation framework has been developed to assess the 2017 Drug Strategy. However, a number of initiatives that have been implemented under the 2017 Drug Strategy have been subject to assessment or evaluation, including;
On the question of punishment for people who break the law, including buying illicit drugs, the Government is unashamedly clear that drug use is unacceptable and users must face the consequences. Prison is one possible punishment, however the police have a range of powers at their disposal to deal with drug-related offences in a way that is proportionate to the circumstances of the offender and the public interest. They also have discretion to engage a first-time young offender with local services to assess their needs including the risk of harm. How police choose to pursue investigations is an operational decision for chief constables, but we are clear that we expect them to enforce the law.
Addressing drugs and drug harms is not something that law enforcement alone can do and we must ensure that we intervene early and effectively to reduce the demand for drugs. We therefore take a balanced approach which brings together police, health, community and global partners to tackle the illicit drug trade, protect the most vulnerable and help those with a drug dependency to recover and turn their lives around.
Violence and exploitation is an inherent part of the business model of organised criminal gangs who supply drugs, and it is important that we continue to address this threat. Law enforcement partners are therefore cracking down on criminals who supply drugs, causing misery to families and communities. Violence Reduction Units and police forces work with local partners to understand and tackle the drivers of violence in their area. This year we have provided VRUs with £35.5m to continue this work, alongside an additional £30m of ‘Grip’ funding to the police force areas most affected by violent crime.
We know there is more to do to tackle drugs and the harms they cause, which is why the Home Office commissioned a major independent review, led by Dame Carol Black, to examine these issues. Part one of the Review was published in February 2020 and provided a detailed analysis of drug supply and demand. In July last year, DHSC announced the second part of the review led by Dame Carol to look at prevention, treatment and recovery which will be published later this year.
The Government continues to go further than the Drug Strategy 2017. In January, the Government announced a £148 million new investment to cut crime and protect people from the scourge of illegal drugs including;
Together the funding represents a comprehensive drive by the Government to build back safer from the pandemic by helping people break free from the scourge of drug use and cutting drug-fuelled crime and violence.
Asked by: Crispin Blunt (Independent - Reigate)
Question to the Home Office:
To ask the Secretary of State for the Home Department, with reference to the Government report entitled An evaluation of the Government’s Drug Strategy 2010, which reported a lack of robust evidence as to whether capture and punishment serves as a deterrent for drug use, for what reason drug users continue to be criminalised given that lack of robust evidence.
Answered by Kit Malthouse
No evaluation framework has been developed to assess the 2017 Drug Strategy. However, a number of initiatives that have been implemented under the 2017 Drug Strategy have been subject to assessment or evaluation, including;
On the question of punishment for people who break the law, including buying illicit drugs, the Government is unashamedly clear that drug use is unacceptable and users must face the consequences. Prison is one possible punishment, however the police have a range of powers at their disposal to deal with drug-related offences in a way that is proportionate to the circumstances of the offender and the public interest. They also have discretion to engage a first-time young offender with local services to assess their needs including the risk of harm. How police choose to pursue investigations is an operational decision for chief constables, but we are clear that we expect them to enforce the law.
Addressing drugs and drug harms is not something that law enforcement alone can do and we must ensure that we intervene early and effectively to reduce the demand for drugs. We therefore take a balanced approach which brings together police, health, community and global partners to tackle the illicit drug trade, protect the most vulnerable and help those with a drug dependency to recover and turn their lives around.
Violence and exploitation is an inherent part of the business model of organised criminal gangs who supply drugs, and it is important that we continue to address this threat. Law enforcement partners are therefore cracking down on criminals who supply drugs, causing misery to families and communities. Violence Reduction Units and police forces work with local partners to understand and tackle the drivers of violence in their area. This year we have provided VRUs with £35.5m to continue this work, alongside an additional £30m of ‘Grip’ funding to the police force areas most affected by violent crime.
We know there is more to do to tackle drugs and the harms they cause, which is why the Home Office commissioned a major independent review, led by Dame Carol Black, to examine these issues. Part one of the Review was published in February 2020 and provided a detailed analysis of drug supply and demand. In July last year, DHSC announced the second part of the review led by Dame Carol to look at prevention, treatment and recovery which will be published later this year.
The Government continues to go further than the Drug Strategy 2017. In January, the Government announced a £148 million new investment to cut crime and protect people from the scourge of illegal drugs including;
Together the funding represents a comprehensive drive by the Government to build back safer from the pandemic by helping people break free from the scourge of drug use and cutting drug-fuelled crime and violence.