Alex Stevens
@profalexstevens.bsky.social
Professor of Criminology, University of Sheffield. Trustee at Criminal Justice Alliance. Volunteer for Visually Impaired Sailing Association and Sheffield Jazz. Peak District walker. Drug policy geek.
Pinned
New on Talking Drugs:
www.talkingdrugs.org/how-internat... Summary of our recent article on how and why consensus fractured at the 2024 Commission on Narcotic Drugs.
www.talkingdrugs.org/how-internat... Summary of our recent article on how and why consensus fractured at the 2024 Commission on Narcotic Drugs.
How International Drug Policy Is Increasingly Fragmented - TalkingDrugs
The international drug policy landscape has been disrupted in the past couple of years, with two main moral groups emerging in the aftermath.
www.talkingdrugs.org
February 13, 2026 at 2:58 AM
New on Talking Drugs:
www.talkingdrugs.org/how-internat... Summary of our recent article on how and why consensus fractured at the 2024 Commission on Narcotic Drugs.
www.talkingdrugs.org/how-internat... Summary of our recent article on how and why consensus fractured at the 2024 Commission on Narcotic Drugs.
Reposted by Alex Stevens
CALL FOR ABSTRACTS for #LEPH2026
Abstracts should address innovative research, policy development, or practice-based initiatives that contribute to safer, healthier communities and relate to the conference’s themes: leph2026.org
@vp-centre.bsky.social
Abstracts should address innovative research, policy development, or practice-based initiatives that contribute to safer, healthier communities and relate to the conference’s themes: leph2026.org
@vp-centre.bsky.social
February 12, 2026 at 4:55 AM
CALL FOR ABSTRACTS for #LEPH2026
Abstracts should address innovative research, policy development, or practice-based initiatives that contribute to safer, healthier communities and relate to the conference’s themes: leph2026.org
@vp-centre.bsky.social
Abstracts should address innovative research, policy development, or practice-based initiatives that contribute to safer, healthier communities and relate to the conference’s themes: leph2026.org
@vp-centre.bsky.social
A risk of overselling decriminalisation, by saying that it will reduce drug deaths, is that it may be reversed if it doesn't appear to do so.
B.C. cancelled its drug decriminalization pilot, saying it hadn’t “delivered the results” they wanted.
Its results: fewer drug users arrested and traumatized by cops.
@desmondcole.bsky.social explains that when governments cave to moral panic, we lose good policies. breachmedia.ca/decriminaliz...
Its results: fewer drug users arrested and traumatized by cops.
@desmondcole.bsky.social explains that when governments cave to moral panic, we lose good policies. breachmedia.ca/decriminaliz...
Decriminalization worked. B.C. killed it anyway ⋆ The Breach
The province’s drug decriminalization experiment lowered arrests and reduced harm—but it failed a different political test
breachmedia.ca
February 10, 2026 at 6:32 AM
A risk of overselling decriminalisation, by saying that it will reduce drug deaths, is that it may be reversed if it doesn't appear to do so.
Some good news from Portugal www.theguardian.com/world/2026/f...
Landslide win for centre-left candidate António José Seguro in Portugal’s presidential runoff
Moderate socialist defeats far-right populist André Ventura, with exit polls putting him comfortably above two-thirds of vote
www.theguardian.com
February 9, 2026 at 5:58 AM
Some good news from Portugal www.theguardian.com/world/2026/f...
Reposted by Alex Stevens
The number of people dying in prisons in England and Wales has risen to the highest level on record, official data reveal.
Prisons recorded 394 deaths in 2025 – a 15% increase on the previous year.
https://howardleague.org/news/revealed-the-rising-death-toll-in-prisons-in-england-and-wales/
Prisons recorded 394 deaths in 2025 – a 15% increase on the previous year.
https://howardleague.org/news/revealed-the-rising-death-toll-in-prisons-in-england-and-wales/
January 31, 2026 at 8:30 AM
The number of people dying in prisons in England and Wales has risen to the highest level on record, official data reveal.
Prisons recorded 394 deaths in 2025 – a 15% increase on the previous year.
https://howardleague.org/news/revealed-the-rising-death-toll-in-prisons-in-england-and-wales/
Prisons recorded 394 deaths in 2025 – a 15% increase on the previous year.
https://howardleague.org/news/revealed-the-rising-death-toll-in-prisons-in-england-and-wales/
Reposted by Alex Stevens
Our new paper on Digital Harm Reduction and "Here4U Scotland app" from lead author @hadidf.bsky.social. Always a privilege to work and learn from @hadidf.bsky.social and @catrionamath.bsky.social 🙏. Thanks to @profalexstevens.bsky.social for ongoing PhD support 🙏
journals.sagepub.com/doi/10.1177/...
journals.sagepub.com/doi/10.1177/...
Sage Journals: Discover world-class research
Subscription and open access journals from Sage, the world's leading independent academic publisher.
journals.sagepub.com
January 30, 2026 at 10:39 PM
Our new paper on Digital Harm Reduction and "Here4U Scotland app" from lead author @hadidf.bsky.social. Always a privilege to work and learn from @hadidf.bsky.social and @catrionamath.bsky.social 🙏. Thanks to @profalexstevens.bsky.social for ongoing PhD support 🙏
journals.sagepub.com/doi/10.1177/...
journals.sagepub.com/doi/10.1177/...
Thanks to Dr James Densley for telling it like it is.
The lies being spread by the Trump regime are sickening. Good to see the BBC pushing back against them with this analysis from Dr James Densley.
January 25, 2026 at 8:14 AM
Thanks to Dr James Densley for telling it like it is.
Reposted by Alex Stevens
Doors and gates left open. Men spending 23 hours a day in their cells. High levels of self-harm, violence and use of force with batons. Cancelled family visits.
Not an encouraging start for England's newest prison: https://www.bbc.co.uk/news/articles/cn9z81r18xvo
Not an encouraging start for England's newest prison: https://www.bbc.co.uk/news/articles/cn9z81r18xvo
Minister warned as gates and doors 'left open' at HMP Millsike
A watchdog has highlighted concerns about security and high levels of violence at HMP Millsike.
www.bbc.co.uk
January 24, 2026 at 8:00 AM
Doors and gates left open. Men spending 23 hours a day in their cells. High levels of self-harm, violence and use of force with batons. Cancelled family visits.
Not an encouraging start for England's newest prison: https://www.bbc.co.uk/news/articles/cn9z81r18xvo
Not an encouraging start for England's newest prison: https://www.bbc.co.uk/news/articles/cn9z81r18xvo
Reposted by Alex Stevens
There's lots to unpack in this article, with further details of what will be in the policing white paper next week... www.lbc.co.uk/article/mini...
New powers for ministers to sack failing police chiefs after Maccabi Tel Aviv ban fiasco | LBC
Former chief of West Midlands Police Craig Guildford refused to resign after admitting to misleading Parliament
www.lbc.co.uk
January 24, 2026 at 7:57 AM
There's lots to unpack in this article, with further details of what will be in the policing white paper next week... www.lbc.co.uk/article/mini...
Reposted by Alex Stevens
US sec of state Marco Rubio, May 2025: “Today, the US welcomed the historic agreement [on Chagos]. Following a comprehensive interagency review, the Trump Administration determined that this agreement secures the long-term, stable, and effective operation” of the base at Diego Garcia.
January 20, 2026 at 7:34 AM
US sec of state Marco Rubio, May 2025: “Today, the US welcomed the historic agreement [on Chagos]. Following a comprehensive interagency review, the Trump Administration determined that this agreement secures the long-term, stable, and effective operation” of the base at Diego Garcia.
And now we're arguing over a completely meaningless phrase.
The Daily Telegraph: Badenoch - Britain is not broken #TomorrowsPapersToday
January 16, 2026 at 11:09 PM
And now we're arguing over a completely meaningless phrase.
The Jenrick defection is a classic example of a story that the broadcast media will devote hours to, but nobody outside Westminster cares about.
January 16, 2026 at 1:08 PM
The Jenrick defection is a classic example of a story that the broadcast media will devote hours to, but nobody outside Westminster cares about.
Just listening to Curtis Mayfield's 'Pusherman' played on BBC Radio 6. They censored the words 'coke', 'weed', and the N word, but not the J word. #drugstigma
January 11, 2026 at 11:13 AM
Just listening to Curtis Mayfield's 'Pusherman' played on BBC Radio 6. They censored the words 'coke', 'weed', and the N word, but not the J word. #drugstigma
Reposted by Alex Stevens
"Battle Hymn of the Republic" is not a song to be taken on lightly ... but in light of this New Year Trumpian news onslaught, we're sharing this adaptation, called "Battle Hymn of the Empire" - as Trump goes marching on, and dragging us all back to the nineteenth century.
youtu.be/8saU0WeocP0
youtu.be/8saU0WeocP0
"Battle Hymn of the Empire" - Marsh Family adaptation of "Battle Hymn of the Republic" about Trump
YouTube video by Marsh Family
youtu.be
January 11, 2026 at 1:38 AM
"Battle Hymn of the Republic" is not a song to be taken on lightly ... but in light of this New Year Trumpian news onslaught, we're sharing this adaptation, called "Battle Hymn of the Empire" - as Trump goes marching on, and dragging us all back to the nineteenth century.
youtu.be/8saU0WeocP0
youtu.be/8saU0WeocP0
The UK government should not ban X. It should just stop using it. And so should everyone else.
January 10, 2026 at 5:45 PM
The UK government should not ban X. It should just stop using it. And so should everyone else.
Reposted by Alex Stevens
Evidence from British Columbia shows decriminalisation reduced police interference with access to harm reduction — a key public health objective.
Rolling it back didn’t correct failure. It reversed progress.
Full study:
Rolling it back didn’t correct failure. It reversed progress.
Full study:
Policing and access to harm reduction services among young people who use drugs and young Indigenous people who use drugs before and after the pilot implementation of decriminalization of personal possession
McAdam et al. examine how decriminalisation reduced policing-related barriers to services, revealing important benefits for young people, including Indigenous.
f.mtr.cool
January 4, 2026 at 11:31 AM
Evidence from British Columbia shows decriminalisation reduced police interference with access to harm reduction — a key public health objective.
Rolling it back didn’t correct failure. It reversed progress.
Full study:
Rolling it back didn’t correct failure. It reversed progress.
Full study:
Reposted by Alex Stevens
Trump on why he pardoned notorious drug trafficker Juan Hernandez: “It was a Biden set up. Take any country you want. If someone sells drugs in that country, that doesn’t mean you arrest the president and put him in jail for the rest of his life.”
January 3, 2026 at 8:04 PM
Trump on why he pardoned notorious drug trafficker Juan Hernandez: “It was a Biden set up. Take any country you want. If someone sells drugs in that country, that doesn’t mean you arrest the president and put him in jail for the rest of his life.”
The QS world university rankings game is getting ever more ridiculous. I am now getting emails from universities I have never heard of, begging me to big them up.
December 24, 2025 at 12:22 PM
The QS world university rankings game is getting ever more ridiculous. I am now getting emails from universities I have never heard of, begging me to big them up.
Interesting estimate of the number of people in the USA who inject drugs, with substantial fall since 2018. Our estimates in the UK are years out of date.
Estimated Number of People Who Inject Drugs in the United States, 2022
"There were an estimated 2 392 100 (95% confidence interval [CI] = 1 323 300, 4 648 100) PWID in 2022, which was 35% lower than the 2018 estimate."
ajph.aphapublications.org/doi/abs/10.2...
"There were an estimated 2 392 100 (95% confidence interval [CI] = 1 323 300, 4 648 100) PWID in 2022, which was 35% lower than the 2018 estimate."
ajph.aphapublications.org/doi/abs/10.2...
Estimated Number of People Who Inject Drugs in the United States, 2022 | AJPH | Vol. Issue
Objectives. To estimate the population size of people who inject drugs (PWID) in the United States in 2022. Methods. We constructed a hybrid estimator, which applied the ratio of nonfatal to fatal ove...
ajph.aphapublications.org
December 23, 2025 at 7:06 AM
Interesting estimate of the number of people in the USA who inject drugs, with substantial fall since 2018. Our estimates in the UK are years out of date.
Reposted by Alex Stevens
After Canada legalized cannabis, police caught more drunk drivers
After Canada legalized cannabis, police caught more drunk drivers
Police reported more drug and alcohol impairment after 2018. The growth seemed more due to enforcement changes and pandemic restrictions than to legalized cannabis.
theconversation.com
December 18, 2025 at 8:42 PM
After Canada legalized cannabis, police caught more drunk drivers
Please can we stop using journal rankings?
Journal prestige overlooks most influential papers. Our analysis shows that top impact factor journals only catch a small fraction of equally influential articles. There's a lot more science deserving of recognition! #AcademicTwitter #AcademicChatter journals.plos.org/plosbiology/...
Most researchers would receive more recognition if assessed by article-level metrics than by journal-level metrics
Are authors fairly judged by assessment of the prestige of the journals in which their work is published? This study compares article level metrics with journal level metrics, finding that the vast ma...
journals.plos.org
December 19, 2025 at 6:38 AM
Please can we stop using journal rankings?
Farage told to apologise for his racism www.theguardian.com/politics/202...
Nigel Farage told to apologise by 26 of his school contemporaries
Open letter to Reform UK leader expresses ‘dismay and anger’ at his response to racism and antisemitism allegations
www.theguardian.com
December 17, 2025 at 7:10 AM
Farage told to apologise for his racism www.theguardian.com/politics/202...
Reposted by Alex Stevens
Latest monthly visa application figures are out.
Skilled workers? Still dropping.
Health & care workers? Still dropping.
Slow clap.
Skilled workers? Still dropping.
Health & care workers? Still dropping.
Slow clap.
December 11, 2025 at 11:31 AM
Latest monthly visa application figures are out.
Skilled workers? Still dropping.
Health & care workers? Still dropping.
Slow clap.
Skilled workers? Still dropping.
Health & care workers? Still dropping.
Slow clap.
Reposted by Alex Stevens
"Migrants who came to the UK on skilled work visas in 2022-23 will make a net contribution of £47bn to the public finances over their lifetime, according to new estimates from the government’s Migration Advisory Committee."
Not surprising, but some observations (1/n)
www.ft.com/content/10da...
Not surprising, but some observations (1/n)
www.ft.com/content/10da...
December 11, 2025 at 6:09 PM
"Migrants who came to the UK on skilled work visas in 2022-23 will make a net contribution of £47bn to the public finances over their lifetime, according to new estimates from the government’s Migration Advisory Committee."
Not surprising, but some observations (1/n)
www.ft.com/content/10da...
Not surprising, but some observations (1/n)
www.ft.com/content/10da...