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s part of his programme of international visits looking at drug
policy, Home Office minister Norman Baker visited Copenhagen in
February 2014. This visit, one of many from the UK, included a
roundtable discussion at the British Embassy and trips to the
Danish Drug Users Union, a building-based drug consumption
room, and the Christiania cannabis market near the centre of Copenhagen. At
the time of writing (May 2014) we don’t know what impressions the minister
brought back. But there has been sufficient recent activity in Denmark to
consider what might be coming our way.
Denmark’s population of 5.6m includes an estimated 17,000 injecting drug
users, principally using opiates but with an increasing use of cocaine. National
statistics for drug-related deaths, collected by the police since 1970, and by the
health service since 1995, show that since 2000 there have been around 250
annual drug-related deaths (DRDs), falling to 210 in 2012. Reducing this high
death rate has long been the aim of campaigning groups, including
BrugerForening (Danish Drug Users Union) and Gadejuristen (Street Lawyers:
slogan ‘hard-core harm reduction’).
In 2004 Anders Fogh-Rasmussen’s Conservative-led government acted on its
zero tolerance policy on drugs. Against police, Copenhagen City Council and
others’ advice, the illegal but tolerated cannabis market in Christiana (‘Pusher
Street’) was closed down. As predicted, this resulted in the displacement of
the market elsewhere and its integration into existing illegal drugs markets
mainly controlled by rocker and biker gangs. Challenges by other criminal
organisations led to violent turf wars and shootings, predicted by those
questioning the clampdown.
The negative consequences of the closure of Pusher Street resulted in a
detailed proposal by Copenhagen City Council for the regulation of cannabis on a
trial basis. The proposals envisage a state or local authority controlled and
regulated cannabis market – cultivation (a stage in the cycle not included in most
similar proposals elsewhere), distribution and retail. Sale to the public would be
through dedicated outlets, with staff present to advise purchasers on concerns
they might have. The results would be monitored and evaluated to assess
impact. The proposals, which have extensive cross-party support from
Copenhagen City Council (and majority public support) have, so far, been rejected
by governments, most recently in 2012. But they remain ‘live’ following the
November 2013 local elections and the formation of a new city council.
An open cannabis market has been re-established in Christiania. Booths sell
cannabis behind curtained entrances, a stark contrast to the pre-2004 market,
where tables groaned under the weight of bricks of resin. The existence of these
booths seems to have given some UK visitors the impression that cannabis is
freely available in Denmark: signs – in Danish, English, Spanish and German –
mark entry to the Green Light District, request that there is no photography, and
emphasise that the cannabis trade remains illegal in Denmark.
In 2007, Fogh-Rasmussen’s government introduced medically prescribed
heroin, with clinics in four cities, including Copenhagen. A result of parliamentary
pressure and a media campaign, this programme has contributed to stabilising
the health of its clients, mostly older, formerly chaotic, injecting heroin users, and
to reducing crime and associated nuisance. Users attending the programme are
required to inject, not smoke – a harm-reduction behaviour adopted by some long-
term users the programme was intended to attract who have, as a result,
declined to register. About 250 users are registered. Thrice-daily attendance at
clinics is required for prescriptions to be issued and injected, making it difficult
for users to maintain family commitments, employment, or education and
training. The programme is expensive, employing health and medical staff on high
salaries and using pharmaceutical products which could be obtained at a fraction
of the cost from alternative suppliers. Commentators conclude that the
programme was well intended but poorly thought through.
At an October 2013 local election meeting in Copenhagen’s Vesterbro district,
home to several agencies working with socially excluded groups and the city’s
principal illegal drugs market,
the majority of the candidates
who spoke endorsed the
activities and spending of the
city council which responded
to the needs and situations of
socially excluded groups,
including injecting drug users.
Five of the candidates
specifically referred to the
need to maintain a floor of
taxation levels if such
programmes were to continue,
and warned against parties
and politicians who promised
tax reductions.
BrugerForeningen is one
example of the environment in Denmark, or at least Copenhagen.
Housed in a building in the Nørrebro district of Copenhagen whose
other occupants include a youth centre, a library and a nursery
(British nimbies please note), BF provides a morning drop-in service
for injecting drug users; harm-reduction sessions for existing users; a
‘clean-up’ team of users who regularly clear discarded paraphernalia
from areas used by injecting drug users, and organises courses and
seminars for relevant professional bodies – police, social workers
and health professionals. Copenhagen City Council provides some
funding. Lessons here include the ability of long-term heroin users to
plan, organise, manage and campaign, in collaboration with residents
and social agencies, when able to use in safe and sterile conditions.
Together with the NGOs Gadejuristen and Antidote, BF
campaigns for the increased availability of naloxone (a team of BF
members has been trained and licensed to administer naloxone,
the first non-health personnel in Denmark to be permitted to do
so); for the provision of foil as part of harm-reduction and needle-
exchange work, and the provision of drug consumption rooms.
Current health service guidance emphasises the health risks of
Denmark’s initiatives
to tackle drug-related
deaths could give
valuable pointers to
reshaping drug policy
in the UK, says
Blaine Stothard
14 |
drinkanddrugsnews
| June 2014
Harm reduction |
Overseas initiatives
www.drinkanddrugsnews.com
Danish Lessons