(UK) Coalition shelves plans for 'abstinence-based' drug strategy

[alp227]

Plans for an "abstinence-based" drug strategy and to cut benefits for problem drug users who refused treatment, which were championed by Iain Duncan Smith and the Tory right, have been shelved.

The coalition's first official drug strategy, published today, includes plans to pay drug treatment providers "by results", but it acknowledges the difficulties of treating chronic users by talking of "recovery" rather than abstinence.

The Conservative party manifesto criticised existing programmes, saying too many addicts received treatment that maintained their habit, such as methadone as a heroin substitute.

The party promised instead to allow courts to use abstinence-based drug rehabilitation orders to "help offenders kick drugs once and for all", but there is no requirement for the rehabilitation to be "abstinence-based" in the strategy.

The plans for "drug-free wings" in prisons have been renamed as "drug-recovery wings", although they would need to be "abstinence-focused". The justice secretary, Kenneth Clarke, underlined that point last week when he told Tory critics demanding a "drug-free" approach in prisons that simply making problem drug users go "cold turkey" was clinically dangerous. Clarke said he didn't oppose the use of methadone as long as the objective was to get the user off drugs completely.

Full story: http://www.guardian.co.uk/uk/2010/dec/08/coalition-drugs-strategy-abstinence-recovery

When I read the word "abstinence" in the title I immediately began thinking of America's failed abstinence-only sex education. i wonder if that's really a valid comparison.

[FrancisTreptoe]

1. This is a good step.

Abstinence based programs have never worked. This was a no brainer and I wish the U.S would do this.