Last year there was a rumpus surrounding the Advisory Council on the Misuse of Drugs after it’s chairman, Professor David Nutt, was sacked after claiming that ecstacy was as dangerous as horse riding. Today another senior, long standing advisor, veterinary consultant Dr Polly Taylor, has quit the ACMD, bringing the total resignations to six following Prof Nutt’s departure.
Clearly feeling Home Office pressure for policy alignment, Dr Taylor said;
“I feel that there is little more we can do to describe the importance of ensuring that advice is not subjected to a desire to please ministers or the mood of the day’s Press”
Her resignation is likely to cause a further delay in the banning of “miaow-miaow”, or mephedrone, because the ACMD requires a vet on its panel in order to be fully constituted. There has already been a long delay in this process due to the other resignations, including the expert in charge of researching the drug.
A full report on the dangers of the drug must be supplied to Home Secretary Alan Johnson before any legislation can be passed.
New ACMD boss Professor Les Iverson stated his view which seems to differ from Dr Taylor;
“I am not here to give my personal views… but, as a pharmacologist, these drugs are amphetamines by another name and I know that amphetamines are harmful.
“I think you can deduce my conclusions from that.”
It begs the question whether experts on the ACMD being pressured into spewing forth the Government policy rather than being an advisory body. If the former is true, is there any point in the ACMD other than to provide a smokescreen that “justifies” Government legislation?
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Personally I think these drug advisers have got a bit above themselves. It is their job to advise the government on the scientific evidence and reasoning – not to make policy or make mischief themselves in the press. Politicians make policy and whilst the current lot don’t seem up to the job and probably the next lot won’t be either, I’d rather that than unelected “scientists” because this isn’t a pure science anyway.
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And another one who feels the whole issue is being driven by hysteria: http://ericcarlin.wordpress.com/2010/04/02/my-acmd-resignation-letter-to-the-home-secretary/
Whether or not you believe that advisors should be allowed to influence policy is a moot point – if you have them, have the infrastructure of an advisory body and a framework to follow, then use it – otherwise, have the courage of conviction to publicly say that government policy is driven by the media and mass hysteria, as is clearly the case here.
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