Legal Highs
Thank you presiding
officer..
Whilst not a
member of the committee I did attend a meeting during the discussion of this
problem and I live in an area where legal highs are on sale
I intend
pressing for the Irish solution of banning new psychoactive substances based
upon effect not on chemical composition. We will never win a battle with the
chemists
I accept
that legislation will not completely solve the problem as it has not solved the
problem of cannabis, heroin and cocaine.
I also
accept that education is very important
I find it
amazing that people will buy items of unknown provenance and of unknown
composition and then put it into their body
Sometimes
with tragic results
A father was killed by a new legal high found for the first time in
Britain - and an inquest in Cardiff heard
it was five times stronger than heroin.
Dad-of-three Thaker Hafid, 37, was found dead by his wife after trying
the legal high bought online from China.
He collapsed in the study after experimenting with the white powder
delivered to his home.
The hearing was told it was analysed as acetyl fentanyl - described as
having the same effect as morphine and heroin.
Owain Vaughan,
from Glynneath, was rushed to Morriston Hospital, Swansea suffering fits and
being violently sick. The substance he took is not banned — indeed a quick
search on the internet can identify where it is on sale in South West Wales.
I could continue, but I am sure the Presiding officer would not let me, listing people taken seriously ill after using legal highs in Wales for over an hour.
FOLLOWING five
recent cases of people in South Wales needing hospital treatment after taking
so-called legal highs, the Post asked journalism student DANNY GALLAGHER to
find out just how available they are over the counter in our shops. Here's what
he found
The legal high he was searching for goes by the name of Exodus, a
popular underground synthetic cannabinoid or herbal incense. A quick browse
online showed the product is "strictly not for human consumption".
Users of the substance had left reviews, one simply warned: "never
again".
It was
soon clear that he was delving into a clouded and unregulated industry
In October 2013, 17-year-old Matt Ford lost consciousness and suffered a heart attack in his Canterbury bedroom after inhalation of Exodus. Another man from Kent had sustained severe brain damage after a heart attack.
Two years on and it is still on the streets, sold legally.
Before setting off, he checked online the kind of prices . Most sites
agreed on around £8 for a one gram sachet of the product, or up to £55 for nine
grams.
It was early morning when he approached the shop in Neath, which had two
men in the doorway. After informing the lady behind the counter I wanted
Exodus, she signalled to a male by the door who promptly came over to serve him.
The man
quickly asked to see identification before locating a shoulder bag from beyond
the counter — inside, a collection of herbal incenses. He wasn't asked for a
specific cash sum, instead he just looked at me as though he was intended to
know.
He then visited a shop in Swansea city centre. The store said it did not
stock herbal incense, but was happy to provide a product called Salvia.
Derived from the sage-like plant salvia divinorum, the substance is
known to produce strong hallucinogenic experiences. The cashier gave the
options of different strengths.
A moment
later and £9.75 out of pocket he had bought a gram. Clearly labelled on the
packet were the words: Not approved for human consumption
Finally can I turn to Woodfield Street in Morriston where a shop selling legal highs exists.
Where you can find
people collapsed on the floor
People who are
described colloquially as out of it
We have Elderly
Residents in fear of walking on the pavement.
A bike with Sat
Nav is used for delivery
Whilst making it
illegal will not stop it being used
It will stop it
being sold on the streets and on the Internet
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