§ Ms Estelle MorrisTo ask the Secretary of State for the Home Department what plans he has to make the sale of amylnitrite to children illegal.
§ Mr. MacleanThe substance amylnitrite belongs to the group of chemicals known as alkylnitrites. While it is not strictly speaking a solvent, it can be misused by inhalation of its vapours. Sales of intoxicating substances are already regulated by the Intoxicating Substances (Supply) Act 1985 which makes it an offence for people such as retailers to sell or supply intoxicating substances to persons under 18 whom they believe intend to misuse them. The Act has no specific list of chemicals; there is a wide range of everyday products which can be misused by inhalation.
The Advisory Council on the Misuse of Drugs has considered the misuse of alkylnitrites and the possibility of controlling them under the Misuse of Drugs Act 1971 on three occasions—in 1984, 1987 and 1991. On each occasion, the council concluded that, although the misuse of those substances posed a limited health hazard, such misuse did not lead to dependency and did not give rise to social problems of a scale to justify use of the controls in the 1971 Act. The advisory council is, however, keeping the matter under review.