Drug adviser No7 resigns and attacks ministers for criminalising the young

Published on Friday 2 April 2010 22:15

ANOTHER government drug adviser quit yesterday, claiming plans to ban "legal high" dance-drug mephedrone – also known as bubbles or meow-meow – were rushed through due to political pressure.

Eric Carlin became the seventh member of the Advisory Council on the Misuse of Drugs (ACMD) to resign. He said his decision was a protest at the way mephedrone had been criminalised.

In his letter of resignation to Home Secretary Alan Johnson, he said: "We had little or no discussion about how our recommendation to classify this drug would be likely to impact on young people's behaviour.

"Our decision was unduly based on media and political pressure."

Earlier this week, Dr Polly Taylor, a long-standing member of the ACMD, quit hours before Mr Johnson announced the planned ban. Last October, the ACMD was thrown into turmoil after five advisers resigned in protest when chairman Professor David Nutt was effectively sacked by Mr Johnson. Prof Nutt had claimed Ecstasy and LSD were less dangerous than alcohol, leading Mr Johnson to ask him to resign.

This has sparked a continuing row over how scientific advice is used by the government. Mr Carlin, 47, said he was disillusioned with the committee's "lack of interest" in prevention and early intervention with young people. He said more debate was needed on what to do about mephedrone, which the government plans to ban within weeks.

Danny Kushlick, director of the Transform Drug Policy Foundation, said: "This latest resignation is because Carlin recognises that criminalisation causes harm for young people in direct contradiction to the government's stated intention."

The drug has been linked to up to 25 deaths in England and Scotland. It has similar effects to amphetamines and can cause temperature changes, heart palpitations and paranoia, according to the ACMD.

Prof Nutt said the council had been placed under "inappropriate pressure" to draw up advice on the drug. He said: "There's been a terrible pressure to come to a resolution about mephedrone – inappropriate pressure.

"The meeting this week was rushed through so that the chairman could leave to do a press conference when the Home Secretary wanted to do a press conference – it's a travesty about a proper discussion, about the proper way in which you should deal with an important issue like mephedrone."

A Home Office spokesman said: "The resignation was regrettable. However, it does not impact on our plans to ban mephedrone and the other substances as soon as parliamentary times allows."

Shadow home secretary Chris Grayling said: "The relationship between the government and its drugs advisory council has become utterly shambolic.

"The decision on mephedrone was the right one, but this latest resignation suggests pretty clearly that the Home Secretary has been completely unable to restore his relationship with the experts who advise him."

Liberal Democrat home affairs spokesman said government "meddling" in the advisory council had delayed earlier investigations into the drug. He said there should be a new "pending" category for certain legal drugs to stop them being marketed while they were assessed by scientists.