Three years ago, in PoliticsHome, CEO of Veterans Aid Professor Hugh Milroy warned about the legacy of distress the charity was dealing with due to drug-related outflow from HM Armed Forces. Two years later it was revealed that the discharge of large numbers of service personnel due to drug abuse was continuing unabated – approximately 4,000 between 2018 and 2022. In the wake of several distressing cases at Veterans Aid Prof Milroy is urging policymakers to revisit the wide-ranging consequences of 'zero tolerance' dismissals.

With new weight-loss drugs hailed as ‘miracle’ medicines, Harriet Symonds explores whether their increasing popularity should be treated with more caution

The UK's largest provider of drug and alcohol treatment services has described the Budget as a "critical moment" for the sector with any reduction in funding risking an "unravelling" of rehabilitation provision.

In a significant change of direction, the Government has switched its obesity strategy to a £40 million drug pilot. Carolyn Pallister, Registered Dietitian and Head of Nutrition, Research and Health from the UK's leading weight loss organisation Slimming World, looks at what this means for people who need support to lose weight.

Around 17% of recent military veterans in the UK report symptoms of post-traumatic stress disorder (PTSD) and currently available treatments don’t work for many of these. Professor Jo Neill, Dr Verity Wainwright, and Frances Smith from The University of Manchester report the findings of a new study into the role that psilocybin (the active constituent of so-called ‘magic’ mushrooms) can have in the treatment of PTSD symptoms in veterans, and how the law can be updated to enable more research in this area.

Recently, I visited a community project on a housing estate where families told me they were being terrorised by a gang of boys, excluded from school, who were delivering a county line to an area about 80 miles away.

New appointment reflects ambition for growth to drive drug discovery innovation.

Pivotal partnership seeks to transform Cystic Fibrosis research.

From Harm to Hope is the Government’s 10-year plan to cut crime and save lives by reducing the supply/demand for drugs and delivering a high-quality treatment and recovery system. It’s one of many current initiatives focused on delivering long-term solutions to problems facing society today. CEO of Veterans Aid, Dr Hugh Milroy, reflects on the implications of ‘horizon thinking’ and questions whether the balance is right.

Parliamentary staff have criticised the lack of a confidential system to report MPs or colleagues who may be taking drugs on the estate.

Medicines Discovery Catapult (MDC) today announces the relaunch of radiochemistry at the Wolfson Molecular Imaging Centre (WMIC) in Manchester.

The Right to Recovery Bill is designed to cut through the broken treatment system and guarantee that everyone who needs treatment can get it.

A recent research paper into the  discharge process for men and women dismissed from the Armed Forces for drug use found it ‘inconsistent and damaging’. Pledges to explore and redress this are welcome, but in the interim frontline charities like Veterans Aid are dealing with its devastating impact on individuals and families. Dr Hugh Milroy, CEO of the charity, explains why a review of the policy is needed.

My Private Members Bill seeks immediate, practical changes designed to help problem drug users and calls for the decriminalisation of possession of small amounts of drugs for personal use.

While we continue to isolate and stigmatise drug use the problem will only get worse. We need to reform the 1971 Misuse of Drugs Act and introduce safe drug consumption rooms.

This marks another crucial step forward in the development of the first ever treatment to slow down the progression of Alzheimer’s disease

Many who take nitrous oxide have no idea of the risks it carries; in some cases causing permanent nerve damage and has been linked to 25 deaths since 2010.