Auckland City Missioner Diane Robertson has said her staff have reported a rise in clients showing symptoms of solvent abuse.

The lawyer for Leeza Ormsby hopes for a sentence of less than 18 months for the New Zealander facing drug charges in Bali.

An Irishman accused of running a global drug ring which allegedly smuggled methamphetamine to a Queen St apartment has been extradited to Auckland to face criminal charges.

Two armed men allegedly held up an R18 store and stole synthetic drugs - just minutes before the products were deemed officially illegal.

A law change to take synthetic drugs off the shelves will be passed under urgency by tomorrow afternoon.

A German international student has been expelled from school and faces being kicked out of the country because he had one puff on a joint in his free time.

It's possible our politicians haven't a clue what they're doing with drug policy. It's easy to see why.

Peaches Geldof died of a heroin overdose, echoing the death of her mother which had haunted her, it has been reported.

Synthetic cannabis products will be pulled from shelves faster than the looming Government ban, as users suffer acute psychotic reactions and prolonged withdrawal.

If the research produces essential results of value to humanity that cannot be produced in any other way, despite its cruelty, it should be permissible, writes Alexander Gillespie.

The number of people seeking help to quit synthetic cannabis has soared and is expected to rise further next month.

Makers of synthetic drugs predict the Government's "surprise" ban on their products will force 80 shops to close their doors and 200 staff to lose jobs.

PM John Key says leaving some synthetic drugs on the market was “a mistake” and Government should have banned all products until a rigorous testing regime was in place.

New Zealanders whose lives have been blighted by the dangers of legal highs are thrilled by plans to pull them from sale within a fortnight.

It is still hard to believe New Zealand legalised cannabis last July. The Psychoactive Substances Act applies only to chemical creations of the drug but these are said to be more potent than the plant.

The sale of legal highs could be effectively banned in Rotorua from June 5.

New Zealanders have been let down by a "wimpish'' Government over its refusal to ban psychoactive substances, Napier Mayor Bill Dalton says.

Auckland teenager Rose started smoking synthetic cannabis with a friend two years ago just to "hang out".

A transgender Oamaru woman sentenced on Wednesday to nine months' imprisonment in a men's jail could apply to be moved to a women's prison.

A transgender Oamaru woman has been ordered to serve a jail sentence in a men's prison, despite a request for home detention.

A Palmerston North student who imported drugs he ordered online has been jailed for four years and 10 months.

A mother who described herself as a "hermit" until a year ago is the central figure in a grassroots nationwide protest against synthetic cannabis

An explosion in a city-fringe Auckland suburb has terrified residents and alerted police to a suspected P-lab this morning.

Kronic, K2, Thai Hi, Giggle, Spice, Dream, Illusion, Ziggy ... are all names of the poison that stole my son, a poison that our government allows to be sold and to destroy lives.

Fewer workers are being caught on drugs, despite workplace testing becoming more prevalent, latest figures show.

Government regulators have agreed to shut down Hamilton's six "legal high" synthetic drug shops.