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| Tory MP Crispin Blunt 'outs himself' as popper user | Tory MP Crispin Blunt 'outs himself' as popper user |
| (about 1 hour later) | |
| A Conservative MP has told the House of Commons he is a user of the popper recreational drug and a ban on its supply would be "fantastically stupid". | A Conservative MP has told the House of Commons he is a user of the popper recreational drug and a ban on its supply would be "fantastically stupid". |
| Ex-minister Crispin Blunt said users of the drug were "astonished" by talk of a ban and respect for the law "would fly out of the window" if it happened. | Ex-minister Crispin Blunt said users of the drug were "astonished" by talk of a ban and respect for the law "would fly out of the window" if it happened. |
| Supplying the drug, which is popular with gay men, could be outlawed under the Psychoactive Substances Bill. | Supplying the drug, which is popular with gay men, could be outlawed under the Psychoactive Substances Bill. |
| MPs have rejected calls to exempt poppers from the legislation. | |
| Following a debate in the Commons, they voted by 309 to 228 against the move. | |
| The government wants to crack down on the sale and use of so-called legal highs, psychoactive substances chemically designed to mimic drugs that are already banned. Some 18 deaths in England and Wales in 2014 were linked to so-called legal highs. | |
| But plans to ban the supply of poppers as part of the legislation have caused controversy. | But plans to ban the supply of poppers as part of the legislation have caused controversy. |
| Poppers, the name given to a group of chemicals called alkyl nitrites, are normally sniffed from a bottle producing a short head-rush. They are used recreationally and are often referred to as a "party drug". | Poppers, the name given to a group of chemicals called alkyl nitrites, are normally sniffed from a bottle producing a short head-rush. They are used recreationally and are often referred to as a "party drug". |
| 'Driven underground' | 'Driven underground' |
| During a debate on the bill in the Commons, Mr Blunt - who is the uncle of actress Emily Blunt and is a former prisons minister - said he would be "directly affected" by the ban. | During a debate on the bill in the Commons, Mr Blunt - who is the uncle of actress Emily Blunt and is a former prisons minister - said he would be "directly affected" by the ban. |
| "There are sometimes that something is proposed which becomes personal to you and you realise the government is about to do something fantastically stupid and in those circumstances one has a duty to speak up," he said. | "There are sometimes that something is proposed which becomes personal to you and you realise the government is about to do something fantastically stupid and in those circumstances one has a duty to speak up," he said. |
| "I use poppers. I out myself as a user of poppers. I am astonished to find it (the government) is proposing it to be banned and frankly so would many other gay men." | "I use poppers. I out myself as a user of poppers. I am astonished to find it (the government) is proposing it to be banned and frankly so would many other gay men." |
| Mr Blunt, who publicly came out in 2010, said the drug had been used for decades and a ban would "simply serve to bring the whole law into disrepute". | Mr Blunt, who publicly came out in 2010, said the drug had been used for decades and a ban would "simply serve to bring the whole law into disrepute". |
| He also warned that banning it would "drive supply underground into the hands of criminals" and increase the use of Class A and Class B drugs. | He also warned that banning it would "drive supply underground into the hands of criminals" and increase the use of Class A and Class B drugs. |
| Independent review | |
| The Home Affairs select committee opposes a ban on poppers, saying it has not been thought through and that the Advisory Council on the Misuse of Drugs has concluded that their misuse is "not seen to be capable of having harmful effects sufficient to constitute a societal problem". | The Home Affairs select committee opposes a ban on poppers, saying it has not been thought through and that the Advisory Council on the Misuse of Drugs has concluded that their misuse is "not seen to be capable of having harmful effects sufficient to constitute a societal problem". |
| Labour spokeswoman Lyn Brown told the Commons that she had heard that use of the drug "enhances sexual experience". Opposing a ban, she said poppers had been used recreationally for 30 years and no government had sought to ban them. | Labour spokeswoman Lyn Brown told the Commons that she had heard that use of the drug "enhances sexual experience". Opposing a ban, she said poppers had been used recreationally for 30 years and no government had sought to ban them. |
| The government says a blanket ban on the production, supply and importation of so-called legal highs, which would authorise the police to shut down websites selling them, could be justified given their links to a number of deaths. | |
| Home Office minister Mike Penning assured MPs that a ban would not take affect without a further review of the evidence, initially by the Medicine and Healthcare Products Regulatory Authority and then by an independent expert. | |
| The review would report by the summer, with a decision to be taken jointly by the Home Office and Department of Health, he told MPs. | |
| "I think that is a compromise," he said. "I think I have listened extensively. I know this is going to be difficult for individuals. I fully respect individuals views bit I hope everyone in the house respects that I am trying to do the right thing to protect people." | |
| Mr Blunt, the MP for Reigate, survived attempts to deselect him in 2013 by members of the Conservative association in his constituency. | Mr Blunt, the MP for Reigate, survived attempts to deselect him in 2013 by members of the Conservative association in his constituency. |