It was just last week that inthemix published news on UK drug expert David Nutt who had lobbied the British government to reclassify ecstasy and other stigmatised drugs, controversially stating that taking ecstasy is “safer than drinking, smoking and horse riding”. It was an intriguing piece, making many think on whether or not a cabal of overzealous lawmakers were adhering to dated moralism instead of measured scientific advice. Seemingly confirming such thoughts, UK officials responded to Professor Nutt’s advice in highly sensible fashion, forcing him to resign his position as chairman of the Advisory Council on the Misuse of Drugs (ACMD).

As reported by multiple news outlets across Britain, Home Office rep Alan Johnson reacted swiftly to Nutt’s evidently incendiary claims, demanding the storied advisor leave his post as the government had “lost confidence” in Nutt.

Yet the move has been met with extreme criticism from journalists and fellow advisors alike, with several members of the ACMD resigning in protest of Nutt being forced out of the council.

Yet there’s plenty more juicy drama wrapped up in the unfortunately termed “Nutt-gate”, with BBC News reporting that the embattled Professor Nutt is planning to set up his own drug advisory council with fellow defectors to keep pushing politicians towards drug reform.

“The message for the British government is a simple one: don’t exclude rational argument in order to exploit a visceral public response. Politicians have to win the hearts and minds of their electorate,” Nutt wrote in a guest editorial for New Scientist. “If your policy is informed by an underlying moral imperative, be open about what that is, and don’t try to disguise it with a veneer of pseudo-science. We ignore scientific evidence at our peril.”

All this over ecstasy, no less! We’ll keep an eye on this story from here to see how it all develops.