4:15pm Friday 19th March 2010
By Jennifer Bell
SCHOOLS have been given the power to confiscate mephedrone from pupils – despite it not being banned under the law.
Schools Minister Vernon Coaker has written to every school in England telling them they can seize mephedrone and all other “legal highs”.
Mephedrone, also known as Meow Meow or M-Cat, has effects similar to those of ecstasy. It has been linked this week to the deaths of two teenage boys, Louis Wainwright, 18, and Nicholas Smith, 19, in Scunthorpe.
East Yorkshire head teacher Jeff Bower welcomed the news but said firmer action still needed to be taken. Mr Bower, who runs Woldgate College in Pocklington, first spoke out when a student at the school collapsed after taking mephedrone earlier in the year. The incident led The Press to launch The Menace of Mephedrone petition, which has currently collected nearly 700 signatures.
“It’s a first step but a small one,” he said. “It’s like putting out a fire with a small drizzle of water. I can not understand why people are still dragging their heels to ban this drug when people are dying.”
Mr Coaker said the law gives teachers the powers to confiscate "all inappropriate items" irrespective of their legal status.
Schools are also under no obligation to return confiscated substances, he said.
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