To stop lethal drugs from claiming more lives, 11 synthetic
opioids will be banned in the UK, the Home Office announced
today.
On the recommendation of Advisory
Council on the Misuse of Drugs (ACMD), 10 additional
nitazenes and brorphine will be made Class A substances.
These highly dangerous drugs are psychoactive substances which
can be more potent than fentanyl. To protect lives, their
possession will now be illegal and anyone who supplies the drugs
will face up to life in prison, an unlimited fine or both.
Often mixed into other pills sold on the street, the government
commissioned the ACMD to investigate after the substances were
linked to rising overdoses in other countries. The ACMD found one
drug, isotonitazene, was responsible for 24 fatalities in the UK
in 2021 alone. Their recommendation to place all 11 narcotics in
Class A has been accepted.
Policing Minister said:
Synthetic opioids are highly dangerous substances, which ruin
lives and devastate communities.
We must stop these lethal drugs from reaching our streets, to
prevent more tragic deaths and other harmful consequences of
addiction, from violent crime to antisocial behaviour.
Drugs like these erode our society and we accept the Advisory
Council on the Misuse of Drugs’ recommendations, to bring proper
penalties on their supply.
The substances to be added to Class A of the Misuse of Drugs Act
1971, subject to Parliamentary approval, are: Butonitazene,
Etodesnitazene (etazene), Flunitazene, Isotonitazene,
Metodesnitazene (metazene), Metonitazene,
N-Desethylisotonitazene, N-Piperidinyl-etonitazene
(etonitazepipne), N-Pyrrolidino-etonitazene (etonitazepyne),
Protonitazene and Brorphine. Because they have no recognised
medical uses in the UK, they will also be placed in Schedule 1 of
the Misuse of Drugs Regulations 2001. Legislation will be brought
forward to control these substances under the Misuse of Drugs Act
1971, as soon as possible, when Parliamentary time allows.
The move comes as a UK Drugs Ministerial was held yesterday, with
ministers and experts from across the four nations. Chaired by
the Policing Minister, it seeks to facilitate a UK-wide approach
to tackling substance misuse.
Attendees included Scottish and Welsh representatives, and , along with representatives
from the Office for Health Improvement and Disparities, and
Department for Health and Social Care. Dame Carol Black,
Independent Advisor on Combating Drugs, and Owen Bowden-Jones,
Chair of the ACMD, were also in attendance.
Delegates shared information on drug-related deaths, including
impacts of poly-drug use, as well as drug supply and use across
the UK.
The meeting was the third of its kind. It supports the
cross-government drug strategy, which brings a whole-system
approach to tackling drugs, from enforcement through to
treatment. Over 2,900 county lines, which shift drugs around the
country, have already been dismantled through the approach. As
part of the effort to tackle drug-related deaths, we have also
dedicated £780 million to support people through treatment and
recovery.
And today, the Department of Health and Social Care has also
announced £53m will go to 28 local authorities in England to
provide housing support to people in drug and alcohol treatment.
The funding strengthens our government-wide commitment to
reducing drug use and improving treatment outcomes, as part of
the drug strategy.
