Drug advisers to review khat policy


(UKPA) – The use of the stimulant khat is to be reviewed by the Government's drugs advisers, the Home Office said.

The Advisory Council for the Misuse of Drugs (ACMD) will conduct a "comprehensive study" into khat, which is mainly chewed by Somali, Yemeni and Ethiopian communities in the UK in a bid to promote alertness and relaxation.

Measures could include regulation of the import, distribution and sale of the drug, which is legal in the UK but banned in the US and parts of Europe, or even an outright ban.

While occasional use was widely seen as socially acceptable in the UK, both frequent and heavy use were perceived to have "negative consequences" and there was "widespread support for some level of Government intervention", Home Office research found.

"Such 'problematic' use is generally regarded as needing to be addressed through prevention, treatment and wider types of social support," the research found.

But there were "very few reports of associations between khat and crime or anti-social behaviour", despite there being "some controversy over even moderate levels of khat use, with some community members being totally opposed to the practice", the report said.

"There is widespread support from within the communities and from professionals for broad types of intervention in the issue of khat."

The researchers also called for better and more widely-distributed information on the drug.

Drugs Minister James Brokenshire asked the ACMD to carry out the study following the report, the Home Office said.
 

 

Source: The Press Association