Bitter pill for trials

The classification of Ecstasy prevents it being used for medical purposes. Photo / NZ Herald

The government has been urged to declassify Ecstasy so it can be used on people in clinical medical trials to see if it can treat Parkinson's disease and post traumatic stress.

But Cabinet ministers are unlikely to get a chance to debate the potentially controversial move.

The Ministry of Health commissioned the report, but the Expert Advisory Committee on Drugs has decided not to act on its recommendations.

The report's author, medical anthropologist Dr Geoff Noller, says Ecstasy should be declassified to allow it to be used in clinical trials to gauge its therapeutic values.

He is disappointed but not surprised the EACD, which advises the Government, will not act on the report's recommendations.

He said there was no political will to change the law.

"It's all about politics. If they [politicians] decriminalise policy around drugs, they immediately look like they're going soft," he said. "Ecstasy has killed maybe three people in the past 10 years ... alcohol kills, what, 1000 people a year?"

But Northland man Laurie Langridge is glad the classification won't change.

His 24-year-old son Jamie died in 2000 after taking two Ecstasy pills at a dance party in Whangarei.

"I don't see why they have to re-classify it," he said. "It's definitely not a safe drug."

Advisory committee chairman and Ministry of Health chief public health adviser, Dr Ashley Bloomfield, acknowledged the drug may have health benefits and that international research is being undertaken in this field.

But Ecstasy is a schedule 1 substance under the United Nations Convention on Psychotropic Substance 1971, which New Zealand was a signatory to and was required to follow suit in terms of classification, he said.

A spokesman for Associate Health Minister Peter Dunne said until he received advice from the advisory committee, the classification of Ecstasy would not be reviewed.

Otago University senior lecturer in psychological medicine Dr Gavin Cape is also disappointed. "[Ecstasy] has a long history and has potential to treat medical conditions but it is severely hampered by its current illegal status," he said.

Noller's report says Ecstasy could be used to treat medical conditions such as Parkinson's disease, but its current Class B classification was a barrier.

Noller believes there is increasing interest in research exploring this area. "Concerns have been expressed by respected researchers that the criminalisation of MDMA [Ecstasy] has created barriers to the development of this research."

Cape said Ecstasy could increase empathic responses in post-traumatic stress sufferers

and could help Parkinson's sufferers overcome difficulties with facial expression.