Let pharmacists prescribe cocaine

‘Police justice’ now deals with more crimes than the courts

The number of crimes dealt with by convictions in the courts has been overtaken for the first time by the number handled directly by the police through cautions and fixed penalty fines, it was disclosed yesterday.

Source:- The Guardian, Friday November 30 2007, page 16

Ban on paying for sex comes a step nearer

The government has launched a root-and-branch review of prostitution laws, which will examine the effects of Sweden’s policy of prosecuting men for buying men for buying sex.

Source:- The Guardian, Friday November 30 2007, page 17

Let pharmacists prescribe cocaine

Cocaine addicts should be prescribed the drug by chemists and nurses to help them overcome their habit, the Advisory Council on the Misuse of Drugs said yesterday.

Under current legislation, cocaine can be prescribed by doctors under licence, but the council, which advises the government on drugs policy, said allowing nurses and pharmacists to prescribe it could help addicts get drugs quickly when they needed urgent pain control.

Ministers will now consider the proposal, but shadow home secretary David Davis dismissed the idea as a “white flag approach” to addiction.

Source:- The Daily Telegraph, Friday 30 November 2007, page 2

1,500 under-14s in hospital for booze

Almost 1,500 children under 14 were admitted to hospital for alcohol poisoning or drink-related illnesses or accidents last year.

The Conservatives blamed cuts to public health campaigns and the government’s liberalisation of the licensing laws for the figure.

Source:- The Sun, Friday 30 November 2007, page 4

Stealth curriculum is ‘threat to all toddlers’

A new national curriculum for all under-5s will cause untold damage to the development of young children, a lobby of academics, including child psychologists Richard House, Dorothy Rowe and Penelope Leach, says today.

A letter signed by the group criticises proposals to ensure children aged three and four can write simple sentences using punctuation and use mathematical ideas to solve practical problems, that are due to be made compulsory in all pre-school settings.

The letter said that it could distort the learning experience and lead to unpredictable emotional and behavioural problems.

Source:- The Times, Friday 30 November 2007, page 1-2