The scourge of synthetic drugs needed to be addressed by policy makers in Parliament before it got out of hand, MPs told reporters on Monday.
Speaking at a press conference announcing Parliament’s first conference on drug abuse, Opposition MP Claudio Grech said copycat drugs were on the rise and needed to be stubbed out once and for all.
“We need to send a clear message that we are taking a strong position against these substances,” he said.
Times of Malta first reported on the appearance of copycat drugs on the market back in 2014, when Mario Mifsud, former director of the national forensic lab, said authorities had started noticing the presence of the substance in drug busts and party raids.
Since then authorities have noticed a dramatic increase in the substances on the island.
The island’s foremost drug experts now believe that more than half of all narcotics being sold in Malta are Chinese chemicals, as opposed to ‘traditional’ drugs such as cocaine or ecstasy.
Mr Grech sounded the alarm against the substances on Monday afternoon, alongside Speaker Anġlu Farrugia and Family Minister Michael Falzon at a press conference announcing the parliamentary seminar that will be held on June 26.
The half-day seminar is the first of its kind in the House and will see law makers hear from experts on the facts of Malta’s drug scene.
On his part Dr Falzon said he was aware of "legalisms" that were being exploited by those selling synthetic drugs on the island.
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"This is something that Parliament agrees on. It should not be tolerated," he said.
During today’s press conference the national focal point on drugs and drug addiction – the office which collects drug data and passes it on to EU authorities, gave an overview of the drug situation.
Around 1,600 people are estimated to have a heroin problem, while around 1,800 people undergo some form of treatment for drug related problems at any given time.
Victims of fatal drug overdoses were on average 39 years old.
The focal point provides information to the EU’s drug agency which last week published its annual report on the drug situation in the 28 member states.
The 2018 European Drug Report found that the number of ecstasy pills seized by law enforcement more than doubled over 2016 when some 1,400 tablets had been discovered.
The average content of the drug, found in coloured tablets often sold on nightclub dance floors, has been increasing since 2009, and high amounts of MDMA in some batches had been linked with hospital admissions and deaths.