Go Fiona! Patten Legislates for Drug Decriminalisation in Victoria
Reason Party leader Fiona Patten is yet again doing what she does best: pushing for progressive change in the state of Victoria. Over recent years, the Victorian MLC has successfully seen the establishment of the Richmond supervised injecting room, the enactment...
European Nations Are Moving to Legalise Recreational Cannabis
The last ten years have seen North America champion the legalisation of recreational cannabis. Eighteen US states now have lawful adult use, along with Washington DC and the territory of Guam. The entire nation of Canada legalised and regulated the use of...
“Brute Force and Paternalistic Grand Standing”: Sniff Off’s Olivia Barlow on NSW Police Drug Dog Use
After near on two years of the NSW government having relied on local police to heavy-handedly enforce health measures via the threat of monetary penalisation, and, if that didn’t work, brute force, premier Dominic Perrottet has let the COVID Omicron...
NSW Police See In the New Year Having a Field Day Enforcing Antiquated Drug Laws
As COVID-19 cases soar to unprecedented levels statewide and testing measures are withdrawn to almost nonexistence, NSW police has decided it’s an opportune moment to, once again, start cracking down on locals just trying to have a good time. The NSW...
Drug Decriminalisation Likely for the ACT: An Interview With Labor MLA Michael Pettersson
A parliamentary committee review of a proposal to decriminalise drugs in the capital territory tabled its final report last week, and it has recommended the ACT Legislative Assembly should pass laws that would remove criminal sanctions for the personal possession...
As NSW Refuses to Save Teenage Lives, NZ Legalises Pill Testing Nationwide
New Zealand became the first nation to officially legalise pill testing, or drug checking services, on 1 December, as the government passed a bill enshrining the harm reduction intervention in law. The move comes just a week after a bill...
Legalising Hemp Leaf Foods: An Interview With Industry Pioneer Andrew Kavasilas
These days, if you walk down the aisles of any Australian supermarket, whether it be a major outlet or a smaller local store, you’ll come across hempseed food products. And they’ll usually be found in the health food section, as...
NSW Government Proposes to Divert Certain Drug Offenders Away From the Criminal Justice System
The New South Wales Government is proposing to implement a new program across the state, which would give some drug offenders a second chance. It’s a sharp departure from the hardline stance of successive state governments, which have refused to...
As the ACT Moves to Fixed-Site Pill Testing, NSW Police Minister Doesn’t Get It
NSW police minister David Elliott took the opportunity of Sydney opening up from its extended lockdown to strengthen the understanding that he has no idea about the evidence behind the harm reduction intervention known as pill testing. Elliott told Sky...
Police Profiling Intensifies Under COVID: An Interview With NUAA’s Dr Mary Ellen Harrod
The academic paper Policing Biosecurity sets out that of the people NSW police officers pulled up over a suspected COVID breach during the three months to 15 June last year, 45 percent were subsequently searched. However, in stark contrast, just...
