“The Gardai,” they continue, “are worried that fatalities may occur if this batch is not taken out of circulation. If you are concerned or have any more information contact the Drug Unit on 01 6669200 or us here in the SU.”
According to students, pills known as “Scuzz” have been available around campus for the past couple of weeks.
The purity – or otherwise – of drugs was one of the major concerns of the 80,000-plus people who participated in the 2014 Global Drug Survey, details of which were published recently in Hot Press.
The Irish findings highlighted the fact that people here are prepared to pay a premium for what they regard as ‘safer’ drugs and would be prepared to turn their back on illegal substances if legal, government-approved ones were available.
Harm reduction is just one of the issues Hot Press wanted to discuss with Junior Health Minister Alex White who, unlike his predecessors Eoin Ryan and Pat Carey, declined a face-to-face interview. Instead, we were asked to submit written questions to the Minister. Among them was the simple query: “Have you smoked cannabis yourself?”. We also asked: “Do you consider cannabis to be a gateway drug?” and “Has there been any formal contact with the authorities in Colorado where marijuana has been legalised?”
The Minister elected not to answer these, or any of our other questions, instead issuing a bland re-statement of the obvious. This in stark contrast to developments in the US and the UK, where Barack Obama and Nick Clegg respectively, with their questioning of the prohibition model, have ensured that there is a genuine debate taking place on drugs policies.
You can read the questions Minister White failed to address in the new issue of Hot Press out now with Wayne Coyne on the cover.