International status of decriminalisation of drug use

This tender involves an international consortium led by Flinders University Centre for Crime Policy and Research (Australia) alongside RAND Europe and the University of Kent (UK) for the Swiss Federal Office of Public Health research project on “International status of decriminalisation of drug use” (2022–2023/142005219). Spurred by the rising harms from criminalisation of drug use and possession in Switzerland and calls by the Swiss Federal Council to examine alternative approaches that could be employed, this project will critically analyse the international status of depenalisation, decriminalisation and legalisation of drug use and possession. Specifically, it will use a rapid realist review and interviews with Swiss stakeholders and international drug policy experts to analyse 1) Which jurisdictions have introduced decriminalisation, depenalisation and legalisation of drug possession and/or use as of 2022? 2) How are models designed, particularly in terms of regulatory basis, eligibility criteria, and procedural consequences applied; and 3) The latest evidence on positive and negative effects on public health, public safety and criminal justice system and advantages and disadvantages of different models.