WORK this out if you can. A York shop manager who is selling substances that are clearly not for human consumption tells us his staff won’t hand the drugs over to someone they think will consume them.

Perhaps, like us, your immediate response is to ask why else would they buy them. These are research chemicals in the form of incense and powder, packaged in eye-catching designs. What other possible use could they have, but as recreational drugs?

Worryingly, there’s nothing illegal in selling these products to anyone over 18, despite concerns that they may cause dangerous reactions.

At a recent hearing in Kent, a court decided this not for human consumption loophole does not stand up. And in York, Dr Andrew Field, of York Medical Group, tells us there is always a risk of a fatal reaction, which is why he is calling on the shop to stop selling the chemicals. He says what it is doing is ‘mercenary and bang out of order’. Strong words, but these are sometimes required.

A ban on these substances would be good. Better still if shops like the one we mention choose to voluntarily destroy their hazardous stock rather than sell it to the public.