Rustat Conference on Drugs, Science and Social Realities

On 25 April 2013, the Rustat Conference on Drugs, Science and Social Realities considered the continuing crisis posed by substance abuse and dependency, their far-reaching consequences, and an awareness of the need for further debate and new policy initiatives.

Experts from across fields responded to the widespread impression that the current drug policies in the UK was not working. They discussed the issue of decriminalisation and the newly published A Fresh Approach to Drugs report issued by the UK Drug Policy Commission. Presentations were led by Professor Barry Everitt of the MRC and Wellcome Trust Behavioural and Clinical Neuroscience Institute, University of Cambridge, and Professor Nutt of Imperial College.

A participant list and report were not made available due to the sensitive nature of the subject matter discussed.