Nationalist MP sounds warning over dangers of synthetic drugs

Shadow health minister Claudette Buttigieg urged government to clamp down on synthetic drugs, warning that it is leaving some of its victims are being hospitalized at Mount Carmel.

“These synthetic drugs can easily be purchased online and they have horrible effects on mental health, in particular of youths,” she said in her parliamentary adjournment. “The government must grab the bull by the horns here and take action.”

Forensic pharmacist Mario Mifsud told MaltaToday in April that legal highs are the “phenomenon of the day” and that the number of patients who have been sent to Mount Carmel for treatment after using synthetic cannabinoids appears to be on the rise.

Their effects tend to closely resemble those produced by marijuana – including feelings of relaxation, drowsiness, memory distortion, hallucinations and paranoia. However, they are significantly more potent and long-lasting than those of marijuana and a growing body of evidence shows that synthetic cannabinoids can trigger acute psychosis. 

In her speech, Buttigieg also urged health minister Chris Fearne to publish the government’s agreement with Vitalis Global Healthcare for the partial privatisation of the Karin Grech, St Luke’s and Gozo hospitals.

She questioned whether the contract is indeed for 30 years or rather for 99 years, in reference to a Times of Malta article which claimed that a clause in the contract gives Vitalis the right to extend its emphyteutical grant by a further 69 years.

The shadow health minister backed a call by Malta Medical Association general secretary Martin Balzan for the National Audit Office to carry out a due diligence test on the agreement.

“This agreement will not only effect us, but future generations,” she said.