Poznan, 23/11/2011 (Agence Europe) - On Monday 21 November the Polish Presidency, speaking through the intermediary of the ministry of health, recommended the introduction of a preventive ban on the sale of substances contained in synthetic drugs. The Presidency made the recommendation during the meeting in Poland, which brought together national drug coordinators from European Union member states.
Pierre Jablonski, the director for the Polish Office for the Prevention of Drug Addiction, explained that “we are recommending to EU member states the possibility of a preventive suspension of sales of products that possibly contain psychoactive agents, even if they do not yet have any comprehensive data certifying that these products contain these substances”. A preventive ban will take place during the time in which examinations will confirm whether these substances are harmful or not. This Polish approach is expected to become part of the new anti-drugs strategy that will enter into force in 2013.
The Polish Presidency considers that the fight against the trade in synthetic drugs is one of its main achievements. The European Pact against Synthetic Drugs was adopted on the initiative of Donald Tusk during the Justice and Home Affairs Council on 27 October. This requires European actors to step up the fight against the marketing of illegal drugs and their production. These new provisions will unlock controls on new psychoactive substances and formulas, and the application of laws for detecting and dismantling illegal laboratories. (VW/trans/fl)