Duopoly Killjoys Cannabis Bill, as Historic First Vote Takes Place in Federal Parliament
NSW Greens Senator David Shoebridge is the first federal parliamentarian to have brought on a parliamentary vote on the question of legalising cannabis before Australian parliament, and there is a hell of a lot of people in the community that...
NSW Parliamentary Inquiry Recommends Immediate Steps Towards Decriminalising Cannabis
Despite NSW premier Chris Minns’ stated refusal to progress drug decriminalisation laws in this state, the NSW parliamentary committee inquiry into the impact of the regulatory framework for cannabis in NSW, has recommended steps towards the decriminalisation of the illegal...
Taking Pollies on a Journey: Uniting’s Emma Maiden on the Promise of the NSW Drug Summit
The long-sought-after 2024 NSW Drug Summit will open this Friday in the southwestern regional town of Griffith, prior to moving on to the Northern Rivers town of Lismore for a day of hearings next Monday, and over the 4th and...
NSW Police Are Strip Searching Around 100 Civilians at Public Train Stations Annually
New South Wales police officers accompanied by drug detection dogs randomly searching commuters at train stations have been part of life in Sydney since NSW parliament passed laws coming into effect in February 2002, that permitted the warrantless use of...
Moving Away from War Against Drugs Brings Enormous Benefits
The global failure of the decades-long war on drugs has resulted in a myriad of issues for jurisdictions that continue to plough resources into enforcement and retain a model which sees addiction as a criminal law problem rather than a...
Drug Seizures May Suggest a Drug War Victory – But the Reality is Very Different
The mainstream media has for many years acted as a vehicle for law enforcement agencies across our nation to market drug raids as a positive step in the decades-long war against drugs. But the fact of the matter is the...
Vapes Are Legally Available Without Prescription in NSW, But Only at Chemists
Health minister Mark Butler’s elaborate scheme to eradicate recreational vaping in the community, had meant that since 1 July 2024, vapes had only legally been available via prescription at pharmacies. However, this came to an end on Tuesday, 1 October...
“The Majority of Strip Searches Are Illegal”: An Interview with Redfern Legal Centre’s Sam Lee
The NSW Police Force conducted 2,487 strip searches in the field across this state over the financial year 2022-23. And of these searches 13.8 percent were conducted upon First Nations people, despite the Indigenous community only accounting for 3.4 percent...
Prohibition is Failing to Reduce the Social, Economic and Health Risks of Illicit Drugs
Federal law enforcement agencies are boasting of two “major drug seizures” during a 48 hour “blitz” at Sydney Airport from 21 to 23 September 2024. But drug reform experts assert that such “victories” are merely a pin prick to the...
The Futile War on Drugs Continues to Fuel Violent Crime and Endanger the Public
New South Wales police are claiming that recent raids on 20 homes across Sydney in which ‘underworld figures’ are believed to reside has effectively dismantled an alleged organised crime network labelled as ‘The Commission’. However, there are fears the raids...
