A FRESH APPROACH TO CLUBBERS' DRUG

It was the evidence from Commander Brian Paddick, the suspended head of
Lambeth police, that persuaded the MPs to call for ecstasy to be downgraded
from a class A drug (the most dangerous) to class B (the same as cannabis now).

"If I felt my officers were going into nightclubs looking for people who
were in possession of ecstasy then I would say to them, and I would say
publicly, that they are wasting police resources," he told the MPs.

"I would say there are far more important things which cause real harm to
the community."

MPs were also heavily influenced by the independent Police Foundation
inquiry which pointed out that, although deaths from ecstasy were highly
publicised, the drug probably killed fewer than 10 people each year. And
while this was deeply distressing to family and friends, this was a small
percentage of the many thousands of young people who took the drug every week.

The independent inquiry added that often the causes of death had as much to
do with environmental aspects of the dance club scene, such as overcrowding
and overheating, as the drug itself.

Official estimates say that 12% of 16 to 29-year-olds have tried ecstasy
and unofficial sources claim that two million tablets are taken every weekend.

The MPs say that ecstasy is clearly a dangerous drug but in order to cut
the number of deaths, advice should be available in clubs on actions to
take in order to reduce the risks, such as drinking the right amount of water.

The MPs agreed that as long as ecstasy remained a class A drug, educational
warnings about the dangers of drugs such as heroin and cocaine would be
discredited.

The change from class A to class B would cut the maximum penalty for
ecstasy possession from seven years to five years but in practice would
mean that a fine or a police warning would be the most likely result for
simple, small-scale possession.