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.

Few politicians leave behind anything much of value. Former Justice Minister Simon Power is an exception, writes Mike Williams.

A New Zealand ex-pat living in Thailand has been sentenced to more than four years in prison for drug charges, local news organisation reports.

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.

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.

Just one in 100 beneficiaries who had pre-employment drug tests under a new government policy showed any sign of drug abuse.

A ban on legal highs is not possible because the chemical composition of synthetic cannabis keeps changing, Associate Health Minister Peter Dunne says.

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.

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.

Australia's teenagers are increasingly becoming trapped in a culture of booze, drugs and gambling.

More tabs of LSD and its deadly synthetic counterpart `N-Bomb' have been seized by police in one month this year than in all of 2012.

Four men had to be restrained at a party in Christchurch after taking a new and dangerous drug with the nickname N-Bomb.

Four people appeared in court today facing charges related to a P lab that was discovered in a central Wellington apartment early today.

Armed police stumbled onto a P lab in an upmarket Wellington apartment while executing a search warrant just metres from their district headquarters this morning.

An Indonesian official has said Schapelle Corby tried to kill herself when he informed her that the government might send her back to prison.

Indonesia's justice minister says he may revoke Schapelle Corby's parole after watching an Australian documentary about her release from jail.