Crispin Blunt and Ben Ramanauskas: Legalising ‘magic mushrooms’ can boost levelling up, aid veterans, and reduce pressure on the NHS | Conservative Home

Crispin Blunt is the Chair of the APPG on Drug Policy Reform, and is MP for Reigate.  Ben Ramanauskas is a research fellow at Oxford University, associate fellow at Bright Blue, and former adviser at the Department of International Trade.

Psychedelics should be available to enable much more effective treatment of mental health conditions like depression. That was the topic of Tuesday night’s adjournment debate in the House of Commons. The debate is part of a campaign to raise awareness of this vitally important topic, not least with Chris Philp, the relatively new Police and Drugs Minister.

A key issue centres on the legal scheduling of psilocybin, a naturally occurring psychedelic drug found in so-called ‘magic mushrooms’. There is strong evidence showing that psychotherapy reinforced by psilocybin and other psychedelic drugs will be an effective treatment for many chronic conditions including depression, PTSD, anorexia, and cluster headaches.

Unfortunately for sufferers of these conditions, they are unable to access this effective treatment due to the Psychedelic class of drugs being listed in Schedule 1 of our Drug regulations. Their place here was due to a historic official assessment that the psychedelics had no research or medicinal utility.

As Class A drugs, that means they are regulated in a far more restrictive way than heroin or cocaine. This historic assessment has never been updated, despite the overwhelming evidence that psychedelics are far less dangerous than drugs (legal and illegal) and have huge potential to treat medical conditions and for use within neuroscientific research.

Our drug laws and their implementation have worked against this opportunity according to sufferers and potential therapists. Ministers cannot properly explain continuing delays. The UK deserves better: hence the Psilocybin Access Rights Campaign of which this adjournment debate formed a part.

Imagine if a revolutionary new treatment for breast cancer was discovered. It has been shown to be extremely safe, value for money, and far more effective than current treatments. If patients were being denied access to this treatment, and the Government would not reveal why, there would be widespread outrage.

Millions of our fellow citizens are suffering from debilitating mental illnesses. These conditions destroy lives and are resistant to current treatments. 18 people on average commit suicide in England and Wales every single day as they can no longer live with the anguish caused by depression. Psilocybin has the potential to reduce the suffering of millions and reduce the burden on our NHS.

Not only is Psilocybin-assisted psychotherapy an effective treatment for depression, but it has also been shown to help those suffering from post-traumatic stress disorder (PTSD), a particular problem for veterans. We are improving in recognising this and supporting them. The Budget support for Johnny Mercer’s team in the Cabinet Office reflected this.

But we are contributing to a shocking failure to treat the consequences of their active service. We have a safe and effective way to help our veterans. Yet it is denied by a bureaucratic inertia unwilling to reassess the evidence. Collective responsibility means all ministers are party to this. They should be demanding action from the Home Secretary and tacking action in their own policy areas to make this treatment a reality. Inertia is not acceptable.

Psilocybin also has huge research potential. Again, Britain is getting short-changed through our regulatory inflexibility. Being in Schedule 1 makes it much harder for UK scientists to conduct research into and using psilocybin. The Government has repeatedly set out its desire to transform the UK into a science superpower. This is a great ambition to have.

Unfortunately, it rings hollow and feels like empty rhetoric given these restrictions placed on our scientists. The UK is home to some of the world’s greatest universities, but we risk them falling behind and losing their edge over universities in the US, EU, and China if we continue to restrict and hamper their research.

If we want our universities to remain world beating and if we want to attract the very best minds from around the world, then the Home Office needs to start listening to the evidence. Rightly or wrongly, they lead on Drugs Policy.

The Home Office’s stance is also bad news for the UK economy. For example, research conducted in 2016 revealed a significant decrease in depressive symptoms for up to six months in the cohort; a further study showed significant decreases in anxiety and depression; and an earlier study in 2014 showed 80% per centof the cohort were abstinent from smoking following treatment with psilocybin.

That is progress not only in mental health, which costs the UK economy a staggering 5 per cent of GDP annually, but also addiction. Smoking alone costs the economy £14.7 billion per year, £2.5 billion of which falls to the NHS. Even if psychedelics were to play a small role in improving outcomes in these areas, the impact would be huge. Undertaking research and producing Psilocybin-containing medications would attract foreign direct investment into our country and help to create highly skilled and well-paid jobs.

Moreover, the Chancellor set out in his Budget on Wednesday that he wants to help those who are unemployed due to ill health return to work. Allowing patients suffering from chronic conditions such as depression and cluster headaches to access psilocybin-related treatments will help them to recover and return to work, and contribute fully to society.

Finally, Home Office’S refusal to be proactive in assessing emerging evidence is also thwarting the Government’s ambition to Level Up the country. We know that conditions such as depression and addiction are not evenly distributed across the UK. Rates tend to be significantly higher in more deprived areas, many of which put their faith in the Conservative Party for the very first time in the last General Election.

Psilocybin is not only an effective treatment for depression and other chronic conditions but can also help to treat people suffering from addictions such as alcoholism. Psilocybin has the potential to help people suffering from these conditions make a positive contribution to their towns and cities. We can tackle these health inequalities and bring wealth and prosperity to every part of our country.

Psilocybin has the potential to be truly revolutionary. It can help treat chronic conditions, help our brave veterans, cement the UK’s position as a science superpower, boost the economy, and level up our country. Unfortunately, none of this can happen while the Home Office refuses to change its approach and actively enable research.

We are urging Suella Braverman and Chris Philp to listen to the Psilocybin Access Rights campaign, part of a wider discussion about a fundamental human right to access medicine, and at least urgently reschedule psilocybin to signal their intent to help play their part. Our fellow citizens, our veterans, our NHS, and our economy all deserve better than the status quo.

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