FRANK (drugs)
Encyclopedia
FRANK is a national drug education
service jointly established by the Department of Health
and Home Office
of the British government
in 2003. It is intended to reduce the use of both legal and illegal drugs by providing "targeted" and "accurate information on drugs and alcohol", particularly to school pupils. It is advertised and promoted through television, radio and the internet.
Explained" after several groups (some of which advocate the decriminalisation of cannabis use
) pointed out errors in the information presented. The Transform Drug Policy Foundation
criticised FRANK's campaign on cocaine
on the basis that the harms it depicted are a result of legal prohibition rather than the drug itself.
The Conservative
MP Iain Duncan Smith
criticised FRANK and drug education more generally in a February 2010 speech, arguing that "Drugs education programmes, such as Talk to Frank, have failed on prevention and intervention, instead progressively focussing on harm reduction
and risk minimisation, which can be counter-productive." The Centre for Social Justice
further argued in a December 2010 paper that FRANK "has proved ineffectual and even damaging, to the point of giving information as to the ‘cost’ and immediate physical effects of drugs more prominently than driving home the danger."
Drug education
Drug education is the planned provision of information and skills relevant to living in a world where drugs are commonly misused. Planning includes developing strategies for helping children and young people engage with relevant drug-related issues during opportunistic and brief contacts with them...
service jointly established by the Department of Health
Department of Health (United Kingdom)
The Department of Health is a department of the United Kingdom government with responsibility for government policy for health and social care matters and for the National Health Service in England along with a few elements of the same matters which are not otherwise devolved to the Scottish,...
and Home Office
Home Office
The Home Office is the United Kingdom government department responsible for immigration control, security, and order. As such it is responsible for the police, UK Border Agency, and the Security Service . It is also in charge of government policy on security-related issues such as drugs,...
of the British government
Government of the United Kingdom
Her Majesty's Government is the central government of the United Kingdom of Great Britain and Northern Ireland. The Government is led by the Prime Minister, who selects all the remaining Ministers...
in 2003. It is intended to reduce the use of both legal and illegal drugs by providing "targeted" and "accurate information on drugs and alcohol", particularly to school pupils. It is advertised and promoted through television, radio and the internet.
Services
FRANK provides the following services for people who seek information and/or advice about drugs:- A website
- A confidential telephone numberTelephone numberA telephone number or phone number is a sequence of digits used to call from one telephone line to another in a public switched telephone network. When telephone numbers were invented, they were short — as few as one, two or three digits — and were given orally to a switchboard operator...
, available 24 hours a day - EmailEmailElectronic mail, commonly known as email or e-mail, is a method of exchanging digital messages from an author to one or more recipients. Modern email operates across the Internet or other computer networks. Some early email systems required that the author and the recipient both be online at the...
- A confidential automated chatterbotChatterbotA chatter robot, chatterbot, chatbot, or chat bot is a computer program designed to simulate an intelligent conversation with one or more human users via auditory or textual methods, primarily for engaging in small talk. The primary aim of such simulation has been to fool the user into thinking...
for Windows Live MessengerWindows Live MessengerWindows Live Messenger is an instant messaging client created by Microsoft that is currently designed to work with Windows XP , Windows Vista, Windows 7, Windows Mobile, Windows CE, Xbox 360, Blackberry OS, iOS, Java ME, S60 on Symbian OS 9.x and Zune HD...
, the Talk to Frank bot - A service to locate counselling and treatmentDrug treatmentDrug treatment may refer to:*the treatment of illness with pharmaceutical drugs*Drug rehabilitation, the treatment of substance dependence/drug addiction*Drug Treatment, an album by by the Japanese band Kuroyume...
Criticism
FRANK has been accused of presenting false and misleading information about drugs. One example occurred in 2007 when the site had to remove an article entitled "CannabisCannabis (drug)
Cannabis, also known as marijuana among many other names, refers to any number of preparations of the Cannabis plant intended for use as a psychoactive drug or for medicinal purposes. The English term marijuana comes from the Mexican Spanish word marihuana...
Explained" after several groups (some of which advocate the decriminalisation of cannabis use
Drug liberalization
Drug liberalization is the process of eliminating or reducing drug prohibition laws. Variations of drug liberalization include drug relegalization, drug legalization, and drug decriminalization -Policies:...
) pointed out errors in the information presented. The Transform Drug Policy Foundation
Transform Drug Policy Foundation
The Transform Drug Policy Foundation is a registered non-profit charity based in the United Kingdom working in the field of drug policy and law reform. TDPF began as an independent campaign group called 'Transform, the campaign for a just and effective drug policy', and was set up in 1996 by its...
criticised FRANK's campaign on cocaine
Cocaine
Cocaine is a crystalline tropane alkaloid that is obtained from the leaves of the coca plant. The name comes from "coca" in addition to the alkaloid suffix -ine, forming cocaine. It is a stimulant of the central nervous system, an appetite suppressant, and a topical anesthetic...
on the basis that the harms it depicted are a result of legal prohibition rather than the drug itself.
The Conservative
Conservative Party (UK)
The Conservative Party, formally the Conservative and Unionist Party, is a centre-right political party in the United Kingdom that adheres to the philosophies of conservatism and British unionism. It is the largest political party in the UK, and is currently the largest single party in the House...
MP Iain Duncan Smith
Iain Duncan Smith
George Iain Duncan Smith is a British Conservative politician. He is currently the Secretary of State for Work and Pensions and was previously leader of the Conservative Party from September 2001 to October 2003...
criticised FRANK and drug education more generally in a February 2010 speech, arguing that "Drugs education programmes, such as Talk to Frank, have failed on prevention and intervention, instead progressively focussing on harm reduction
Harm reduction
Harm reduction refers to a range of public health policies designed to reduce the harmful consequences associated with recreational drug use and other high risk activities...
and risk minimisation, which can be counter-productive." The Centre for Social Justice
Centre for Social Justice
The Centre for Social Justice is an independent, not-for-profit thinktank set up by the Rt. Hon Iain Duncan Smith MP, to advance the education of the public in the subject of social justice and to promote the role of the voluntary sector...
further argued in a December 2010 paper that FRANK "has proved ineffectual and even damaging, to the point of giving information as to the ‘cost’ and immediate physical effects of drugs more prominently than driving home the danger."