Draft Misuse of Drugs Act 1971 (Amendment) (No. 2) Order 2024

Matt Vickers Excerpts

Tuesday 15th October 2024 General Committees

[Matt Vickers (Stockton West) (Con)]

It is a pleasure to serve under your chairmanship, Mr Efford. I thank the Minister for her comments and statements. I also thank the ACMD and its chair, Professor Owen Bowden-Jones, for their continued work in providing advice to the Government in this critical area of focus.

In May, the previous Government accepted all five recommendations set out in the ACMD’s March 2024 report, and I welcome the new Government’s continued commitment to accept the recommendations set out in the report. The measures set out in this order will build upon the previous Government’s work to mitigate the very real threat of synthetic opioids across the UK, after previously banning 15 new synthetic opioid drugs.

The conclusions of the Advisory Council’s March 2024 report made clear the substantial risk that the Taliban’s ban on growing opium poppy for heroin production in Afghanistan may result in an increase in the appearance of new synthetic opioids. The March report adds that specifically listing currently identified compounds for control is the simpler approach, but risks being overtaken in the future by the development of further variants.

The House of Lords Secondary Legislation Committee noted that the Home Office would

“need to remain agile in amending the definition to capture new variants.”

What steps are being taken to ensure that the Government remain vigilant to ensure that any variants beyond the scope of this amendment are spotted, and further amendments are made accordingly? Is the Minister confident that the Department and the ACMD are equipped to act in a timely manner to make further necessary amendments?

Of course, other drugs are also affected by the order. Xylazine—also known as “tranq”—is increasingly being used with opioids and being involved in overdose deaths in the United States, and is seen as an emerging threat. The previous Government welcomed and accepted the ACMD’s recommendations, and I welcome the fact that the incumbent Government are continuing to categorise xylazine as a class C drug. To that end, can the Minister provide reassurance that the Department will robustly monitor the impact of categorising xylazine as a class C drug and take any further precautions accordingly to ensure that the Government do their duty in reducing the tragic number of drug-associated deaths?

Lastly, what reflection does the Minister have on the ability to sentence for drugs misuse in the context of the Government’s decision to release low-level offenders early?