There were major ‘unintended consequences’ in the prison estate as a result of the ban on ‘legal highs’ in the 2016 Psychoactive Substances Act, says a report from the University of Sussex. Although outlawing substances like spice reduced availability in prisons it also led to ‘waves of violence, self-harm and suicides’, the document states.
Researchers analysed Ministry of Justice (MoJ) prison data for England, and found that while the availability of NPS like spice, mephedrone and methoxetamine fell by an average of 32 per cent in the four months following the ban it was accompanied by a ‘surge in violence’, with an almost 40 per cent increase in serious assaults. ‘The analysis found no reduction in the volume or severity of violence over the long term,’ it adds. There was also a 15 per cent increase in self-directed violence in the weeks after the legislation, with almost 950 additional incidents of self-harm and ten suicides.
The researchers believe the higher prices for the drugs following the ban ‘made NPS drug habits unsustainable for some people’, leading to the increases in violence and self-harm. According to previous research by Manchester Metropolitan University, synthetic cannabinoids available for £3 a gram online were selling for £100 a gram in prisons even before the ban, with prisoners transferring the money via contraband mobile phones. Following the legislation, NPS prices even outside of prison drug markets were estimated to have increased by up to 300 per cent as sources ‘moved from legal head shops to the black market’.
The University of Sussex researchers studied almost 100 prisons over a period of 40 months, ruling out other explanations for shifting patterns of violence by establishing a control group of prisons with less serious NPS problems. ‘The immediate rise in violence which was found in prisons with high rates of NPS use when the ban came in was not seen in the control group,’ it states. The document calls on policymakers to ‘consider the links between withdrawal symptoms and violence’ when drafting legislation that will affect prisoners.
A damning cross-party report from MPs earlier this week said the use of – and trade in – illegal drugs in the prison estate was now at ‘endemic levels’, accompanied by a ‘dangerous culture of acceptance’. Almost 40 per cent of prisoners reported finding it ‘easy’ to obtain drugs, which were not only fuelling violence and debt but ‘exacerbating existing mental health conditions and trauma’. The commissioning model for prison drug treatment was also ‘complex and fragmented’, it added, ‘compromising the efficacy of treatment outcomes and continuity of care’.
‘Reducing the supply of any popular drug tends to inflate prices, and new psychoactive substances are no exception,’ said associate professor at the University of Sussex and report author, Dr Rocco d’Este – inflaming ‘an already heated environment in overcrowded prisons where mental health problems are highly concentrated. Addicts withdrawing from synthetic cannabis can experience acute psychosis, hallucinations and paranoid delusions. Cutting drug supply in prisons where NPS addiction is rife without offering effective treatment adds another element of danger to understaffed institutions. We need to start addressing demand as well as supply by delivering proper medical treatment and improving living conditions for inmates.’