Yet another member of the Advisory Committee on the Misuse of Drugs, the independent body of scientists that advises the government on it’s drugs policy, has walked out. Members of the committee have been enraged by the government’s political interfering into their work.

Dr. Polly Taylor is a veterinary surgeon, and has resigned in protest against new guidelines from the government on how they want their scientific advice. Put simply, Gordon Brown and co. aren’t interested in actual science. The government wants scientists to be fact-inventors in order to back up government policy.

The part of the guidelines that’s pissed off so many scientists is where it says that scientific advice provided to the government “must not undermine mutual trust.” Many take that to mean: we’ll tell you what we want to hear, you go away and prove it, eggheads.

Dr. Taylor is the sixth expert to resign from the committee since the sacking by the government of Professor David Nutt last October. Some members walked out in solidarity with him, others waited until they saw these guidelines.

Affirming the important role of the corporate media in driving the pseudo-scientific agenda on drugs, she wrote in her resignation letter:

“I feel that there is little more we can do to describe the importance of ensuring that advice is not subjected to a desire to please ministers or the mood of the day’s press.”

Government Ministers: "Stop breaching my trust with facts!"

The funny thing about all this is that it may well delay the banning of mephadrone. Technically, new drug bans can’t be put before parliament without the advice of the committee. And the committee can’t be properly constituted without a veterinarian taking part. HA.

What the treatment of the government’s own scientists demonstrates is that existing drugs policies, and in fact official policies on many issues, are as informed by actual, real science as a Great White Shark would be emotionally affected by a picture of a cute seal. Not very much at all, in other words. Both sharks and ministers want what they want, when they want it. If the government keeps pissing off scientists at such a rate however, they won’t be able to get what they want. What they want right now is to look like they are sensitive to a manufactured media moral panic based completely on unscientific BULLSHIT.

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