The Government’s Drug Advisory Body Has Set Out Its Agenda. Here Is What Is on the Table.

The Advisory Council on the Misuse of Drugs (ACMD) published its work programme for 2026 on 11 March. It signals the areas of drug policy the council intends to scrutinise in the months ahead. Professor David Wood, Chair of the ACMD, signed the document and addressed it to the Home Secretary. It outlines several active workstreams and calls for a more joined-up government response.

For anyone working in public health, drug treatment, or community support, the ACMD work programme 2026 offers a telling snapshot of where official attention is now focused and where the gaps in policy remain.

ACMD Work Programme 2026: Chemsex and Drug Use in the LGBTQ+ Community

One of the most prominent workstreams in the ACMD work programme 2026 is the review of drug use in the LGBTQ+ community, with a particular focus on chemsex. This refers to the use of specific drugs in sexual contexts. The most common substances involved are crystal methamphetamine, mephedrone, and GHB/GBL.

Research consistently shows elevated rates of drug-related harm in this population. A 2022 report by Public Health England found that gay and bisexual men are significantly more likely to report recent drug use than the general population. Chemsex-related presentations to emergency services have also risen across several major cities.

The ACMD’s attention here reflects growing concern that drug harm reduction services do not always reach LGBTQ+ people effectively. A real gap exists between community need and available support.

Young People, Vulnerability and UK Drug Policy 2026

The ACMD continues its work under the “Development and Transitions” workstream. This examines how young people move through periods of vulnerability and into contact with substances. It builds on an earlier ACMD letter on young people’s drug use. The council is now awaiting the Government’s formal response to that letter.

Drug use among young people in the UK remains a serious concern. NHS figures show around one in five 16 to 24-year-olds reported using a drug in the past year. Cannabis accounts for the vast majority of that use. The ACMD is most focused on understanding how harmful patterns develop during adolescence and early adulthood, and what interventions can interrupt that trajectory.

According to the Office for National Statistics, drug misuse deaths in England and Wales reached 4,907 in 2021, the highest figure on record at that time. Young adults aged 20 to 29 represent a disproportionate share of those numbers.

Alkyl Nitrites and Synthetic Cathinones: The Government Still Owes the ACMD Answers

Two specific substances also feature prominently. The council flagged that its previous advice on alkyl nitrites (commonly known as poppers) and its updated harms assessment of synthetic cathinones (a group that includes drugs sold as “bath salts”) have not yet received a full government response.

These are not minor housekeeping matters. Synthetic cathinones link to a growing number of hospital admissions and deaths across the UK. The legal and regulatory status of alkyl nitrites has been a point of contention for years. This is especially true given their widespread use in the LGBTQ+ community and the health consequences that could follow any reclassification.

The ACMD work programme 2026 makes the council’s frustration clear. It wants progress, and it wants it now.

A Call for Cross-Government Coordination on UK Drug Policy 2026

Perhaps the most pointed section of the correspondence targets the structural challenge of producing a coherent government response to ACMD recommendations. Professor Wood acknowledges the Home Office faces real complexity when coordinating input from multiple departments. His letter is nonetheless a polite but firm nudge.

The ACMD specifically calls for the Government’s response to its report “A whole-system response to drug prevention in the UK.” This matters. Whole-system approaches recognise that enforcement alone cannot address drug-related harm. They bring in education, housing, mental health, and economic support as part of a joined-up strategy.

The ACMD also notes that a response to this report may cover the earlier letter on young people’s drug use. Two outstanding pieces of advice could therefore receive answers at once.

Why the ACMD Work Programme 2026 Matters Beyond Whitehall

The publication of the UK drug policy 2026 work programme is more than an internal government communication. It raises questions the whole drug treatment sector is asking. Are services reaching the people who need them most? Do legal frameworks keep pace with the substances in circulation? Do the communities carrying the greatest burden of drug harm get adequate attention?

The ACMD operates as an independent scientific body. It gives evidence-based advice to ministers. Its 2026 agenda signals that the council expects responses matching the scale and complexity of drug-related harm in the UK today.

Drug-related deaths in England and Wales remain at near-record levels. The stakes around this work programme are real. The council has set out its priorities clearly. Now the Government must answer.

Source: dbrecoveryresources