MPs urge dance drug downgrading

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22nd Wed May 2002

The potentially lethal dance drug ecstasy should be downgraded in a major shake-up of Britain's laws, an influential committee of MPs has recommended.

The call to reclassify the illegal drug as class B rather than class A, meaning lesser criminal penalties for possession and supply, has already been rejected by Home Secretary David Blunkett.

Main recommendations  

Downgrade ecstasy to class B

Move cannabis to class C

Create new offence of "supply for gain"

Trial heroin prescriptions for addicts

Pilot safe heroin injecting rooms

Do not legalise or decriminalise any illegal drugs  

The MPs on the Commons home affairs select committee did back Mr Blunkett's moves to make cannabis a class C drug, but also recommended trials of heroin prescription programmes for addicts and the provision of safe injecting rooms.

The committee says the last 30 years show policies based mainly on enforcement are bound to fail.

But they stop short of pressing for any illegal drugs to be legalised or decriminalised.

The recommendations come in a long-awaited report published on Wednesday.

Drug differences

The committee says nothing should be done to imply that taking ecstasy is harmless, legal or socially desirable.

But it recommends it become a class B drug, as cannabis and amphetamines are now, because it is not a "major source of harm to communities".

"The harm caused by illegal drugs varies immensely from one drug to another and - since most users and potential users know this - there is no point pretending otherwise", the report says.

"To those who suggest that to reclassify ecstasy is somehow to condone its use, we emphatically reject this."

The reclassification would reduce the maximum sentence for those found carrying ecstasy from seven years to five.

'Totally misinformed'

Those supplying or making the drug would be jailed for 14 years at most rather than facing the current possible life prison term.

The report prompted Janet Betts, whose daughter Leah died after taking ecstasy, to accuse the committee of being "totally misinformed".

Mrs Betts urged Prime Minister Tony Blair to "have the balls" to stick by his pledge not to downgrade the drug.

Mr Blunkett did just that in his response to the MPs' report.

"Ecstasy can, and does, kill unpredictably and there is no such thing as a safe dose," said the home secretary.

"I believe it should remain class A. Reclassification of ecstasy is not on the government's agenda."

Mr Blunkett did, however, welcome the report as "thought provoking" and said it was right to urge a new focus on reducing the harm caused by drugs.

'Shooting galleries'

The home secretary wants more heroin made available on prescription.

But he urged caution on how far this should be extended - the MPs want trials of carefully supervised prescription, as happens in the Netherlands and Switzerland.

Mr Blunkett also opposed the idea of safe injecting rooms - so-called 'shooting galleries' - for heroin users.

That idea is part of the committee's drive to focus on Britain's 250,000 "problem" drug users, who need £13,000 a year from crime to feed their habit.

Committee chairman Chris Mullin said it had to be recognised that many young people now take drugs.

"We need to focus on that relatively small minority of drug users who are making a misery of their lives and those of others," added Mr Mullin.

Gamble rejected

In their report - agreed by all but one member of the cross-party committee - the MPs rejected calls for cannabis and other drugs to be legalised or decriminalised.

They said it would inevitability result in a "significant increase in the number of users, especially among the very young".

The MPs also want a new offence of "supply for gain" to be introduced to draw a new distinction between dealers and those who give drugs to friends for personal use.

The report has been welcomed by civil rights groups and some drugs charities.

Roger Howard, chief executive of charity DrugScope, said it represented the next steps for UK drugs laws.

Bongme