Question to the Home Office:

To ask Her Majesty's Government whether, and if so, when, they have asked the Advisory Council on the Misuse of Drugs whether synthetic cannabinoids should be reclassified as Category A drugs in view of the serious physical and psychological effects such drugs have on users and in order to be able to deal with those who supply such drugs with the same severity as those who supply heroin and other Category A drugs.

This month, the Government commissioned the Advisory Council on the Misuse of Drugs (‘ACMD’) to provide an updated assessment of the harms of synthetic cannabinoids. This assessment will include consideration of whether the current classification of synthetic cannabinoids under the Misuse of Drugs Act 1971 is appropriate. The advice has been requested by summer 2020.

The commission has been included as part of the longer-term review on cannabis-based products for medicinal use and is available at:
https://www.gov.uk/government/publications/cannabis-based-products-for-medicinal-use-in-humans-commission-to-the-acmd