HC Deb 17 March 1997 vol 292 cc470-1W
Mr. Nigel Evans

To ask the Secretary of State for Health (1) what data his Department collates on the number of people currently treated on average on(a) Friday and (b) Saturday nights at accident and emergency units for (i)ecstasy,(ii)cocaine and (iii) heroin-related incidents; [20354]

(2) how many people are currently being treated in hospital for ecstasy-related health problems; [20415]

(3) what research he has (a) evaluated and (b) commissioned into the long-term effects of taking ecstasy; [20401]

(4) what is his estimate of the number of people who currently use ecstasy on a weekend in the United Kingdom; and on what data these figures are based; [20376]

(5) what research he has (a) evaluated and (b) commissioned on the side effects of taking ecstasy; [20400]

(6) how many people have died in 1996 as a consequence of taking ecstasy or attending ecstasy-related events. [20414]

Mr. Burns

The Department of Health does not collect information by day of the week on drug-related incidents in accident and emergency units, but anecdotal evidence from a number of hospitals suggests that incidents related to the drug known as ecstasy are common at weekends. It is not possible, because of its clandestine nature, to determine accurately the level of ecstary misuse, but surveys suggest that about 1 per cent. of 16 to 29-year-olds take the drug on a regular basis.

Information on the number of patients treated for ecstasy-related health problems is not collected.

The Department of Health has commissioned a literature review to evaluate existing research on both the short-term side effects and long-term health risks of taking ecstasy and has received advice from the Advisory Council on the Misuse of Drugs on these issues, which was the subject of a question tabled by my hon. Friend the Member for Colchester, North (Mr. Jenkin) on 28 February 1997, Official Report, columns 441–42. The Department of Health is considering, in the light of this work, what further research may be necessary on the health risks of this drug.

Figures for the number of deaths from ecstasy in 1996 are not yet available, but there were 10 deaths in 1994 attributed solely to the misuse of ecstasy.