Lord Drayson: Govt must learn from Nutt case
Prof Nutt's comments on the classification of cannabis has divided opinion
Saturday, 07, Nov 2009 03:40
By inthenews.co.uk staff.
Science minister Lord Drayson has said the government should have consulted him before sacking Professor David Nutt over his controversial comments on cannabis and ecstasy.
In an interview with the Times newspaper, Lord Drayson was critical of the methods used in the dismissal of the government's former drugs adviser, who spoke out against the decision to classify the two drugs as Class B substances and compared the dangers involved to riding horses.
Lord Drayson said: "If I had been asked by the home secretary [Alan Johnson] before he took that decision I would have said that a decision to dismiss Professor Nutt would have caused serious concern.
"It's very important that in future the chief scientific adviser and the science minister are consulted before ministers take decisions to sack independent scientific advisers."
Ministers are set to change the way independent scientific advice is used and publicised in the wake of Professor Nutt's dismissal.
However, Lord Drayson refused to say whether he supported Mr Johnson's decision to remove Professor Nutt as chairman of the Advisory Council on the Misuse of Drugs.
He also stopped short of saying whether or not he was tempted to resign over the matter, but revealed both he and chief scientific adviser Professor John Beddington had requested consultation on any future issues of a similar nature.