Coleman Jonathan: Misuse of Drugs (Classification of BZP) Amendment Bill — Second Reading 
Coleman Jonathan: Misuse of Drugs (Classification of BZP) Amendment Bill — Second Reading 
[Volume:645;Page:14653] 
Dr JONATHAN COLEMAN (National—Northcote) 
: 
 I think members have outlined pretty succinctly what this bill will do. It will simply change the classification of benzylpiperazine (BZP) or party pills from being a class D drug to a class C drug. So BZP will become an illegal substance to sell consume or possess. As the previous speaker Lesley Soper observed in her scintillating speech there will be a 6-month amnesty period for personal use which will allow individuals with left-over party pills to avoid prosecution immediately after the bill becomes law. 
I think the best contribution I can make now to this debate is to read out the executive summary of advice to the Associate Minister of Health from the Expert Advisory Committee on Drugs. So members should brace themselves! The executive summary states: “The Expert Advisory Committee on Drugs (EACD) considered benzylpiperazine (BZP) and related substances at its meeting of 19 March 2004. The EACD considered evidence provided by the Ministry of Health’s secretariat the New Zealand drug enforcement agencies and others. The EACD considered the information before it in the terms of the criteria the EACD must apply before making a recommendation to the Minister. It concluded that there was insufficient information available on which to base a recommendation to classify these substances in the schedules of the Misuse of Drugs Act 1975. However the EACD brings to your attention some matters the committee members considered important and which if acted on may form the basis for reconsideration by the EACD. The committee considers that: more information on the health effects of BZP and similar substances should be obtained; the prevalence of BZP use should be investigated possibly through routine toxicological screening through community laboratories; it is inappropriate for BZP to be marketed as a dietary supplement; regulatory options should be explored which could provide additional classifications in the Act allowing partial control eg putting conditions on the promotion or sale of products particularly to young people; there is reason to be concerned that evidence indicates that BZP can create adverse reactions when taken with prescription medicines such as Selective Serotonin Re-uptake Inhibitors (SSRI’s); restricting access to the products that contain BZP may lead to users of these products seeking more harmful controlled drugs as substitutes for BZP; papers provided to the Committee included proposed moves by the industry to develop ‘self-regulation’ covering issues such as advertising age-of-use labelling and retailing. The EACD is not recommending industry self-regulation as the preferred long-term regulatory option.” It goes on to state: “This paper presents evidence on the risk of harm associated with Benzylpiperazine (BZP) and similar substances. They are stimulant-type substances that produce effects similar to known amphetamines and hallucinogens. The information presented addresses the criteria that the Expert Advisory Committee on Drugs (EACD) must take into account when considering the appropriate classification of a substance under section 4B of the Act. There is some concern over the increase in supply of these products which are marketed and distributed independently over the internet through counter-culture retailers and more recently in liquor outlets service stations and dairies. Advertising of these products has occurred in a manner that appears to take no account of the impact on younger people. A significant industry has developed with at least 1.5 million doses having been manufactured in New Zealand last year. The base substance benzylpiperazine (BZP) has legitimate therapeutic uses as a treatment for internal parasites in cattle.” 
Peter Brown 
: Why don’t you just table the report and we can all read it. 
Dr JONATHAN COLEMAN 
: This is not a  
Dad’s Army 
 issue I say to Peter Brown. The report continues: “Although it has been clinically trialled in some countries as an antidepressant medication for humans there is no known human therapeutic use of BZP.” 
The recommendations of the Expert Advisory Committee on Drugs were the following: “After considering all of the information put to the Committee and the classification criteria in the Misuse of Drugs Act 1975 the EACD makes the following recommendations to the Associate Minister of Health: After considering the evidence the EACD believes that there is no current schedule of the Misuse of Drugs Act 1975 under which BZP could reasonably be placed. The Minister of Food Safety should be requested to consider the appropriateness of permitting the chemical BZP to be sold as a dietary supplement in New Zealand when it has known no nutritional value. The EACD recommends that the Minister direct the Ministry of Health to conduct further research into the potential harms associated with the use of BZP. The EACD recommends that the Minister direct the Ministry of Health to investigate the possibility of gathering prevalence data on BZP via the introduction of routine toxicology screening via community laboratories. The EACD recommends that the Minister direct the Ministry of Health to examine options for new categories of classification that can incorporate some levels of control and regulation such as an 18 plus age limit without prohibiting access to these substances completely. This paper should be made publicly available (eg posted on the National Drug Policy website www.ndp.govt.nz) as soon as practicable.” There is a little bit there about media enquiries which I do not think we need to go into further. So that is a summary of the recommendations. 
As we have heard the National Party is supporting this bill. In conclusion I tell members that I have a copy of this report available for tabling.