Are sanctions in UK government policy for possession of drugs ethically justifiable or effective.

What is it about?

We emphasise that a public health approach to drugs should first and foremost aim to maximise population health and wellbeing, which is fundamentally linked to socioeconomic circumstances that are negatively impacted by punitive policies. The White Paper overemphasises the prevention of drug use as an end in and of itself, which will likely exacerbate levels of harm rather than creating a balanced strategy.

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Why is it important?

This is important because it is an analysis of policy choices by government and follows our earlier analysis of the government's ten year drugs strategy https://doi.org/10.1093/pubmed/fdac114. Analysing policy choices in drug and alcohol use is important because we can assess whether policy choices are likely to be effective in improving and protecting the health of the public and good stewardship of public money.