Expert quits Home Office drug panel over 'political vetting'
Prof Alex Stevens resigns after appointment of Release director vetoed by minister
The Guardian (UK)
Sunday, October 6, 2019
Sunday, October 6, 2019
A criminal justice expert has quit the Home Office’s drug advisory panel, claiming political interference in the appointment process is undermining its independence. Prof Alex Stevens, a senior member of the Advisory Council on the Misuse of Drugs (ACMD), resigned over the alleged “political vetting” of panel members by the government. The resignation comes a few months after the crime minister Victoria Atkins vetoed the appointment of Niamh Eastwood, the executive director of the drugs charity Release, after government vetting found she had previously criticised the Home Office and called for drug policy reform.
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