British doctors warned this week that ‘significant numbers’ of British clubbers are taking high strength MDMA by mistake, believing they are snorting other drugs including ketamine and coke. “We see a lot of patients who have taken white powder they think is cocaine but is clearly MDMA,” Dr Paul Dargan, of Guy’s and St Thomas’s poisons unit told a meeting of scientists considering reclassifying E from Class A to class B. “It is a clinically common issue.” (London Standard)

Leading ecstasy expert and panel member Professor Val Curran also spoke at the meeting and during the debate described numerous previous studies linking E with memory loss and depression as ‘meaningless’. “We have not found [one] person who was dependent on ecstasy,” the University College London Professor noted. “The people who used it were actually a bit less depressed. There’s no robust evidence of long-term effects. Further research is needed,” she added (BBC).

Both the BBC and Times noted the British government’s immediate refusal to consider reclassifying E ‘whatever the evidence’, reflecting their ongoing policy of rejecting all scientific advice about drugs they don’t agree with.