Citation and Commencement

1.  These Regulations may be cited as the Misuse of Drugs (Amendment) (No.2) Regulations (Northern Ireland) 2009 and shall come into operation on 23rd December 2009.

Interpretation

2.—(1) In these Regulations, “the 2002 Regulations” means the Misuse of Drugs Regulations (Northern Ireland) 2002(3)

(2) The Interpretation Act (Northern Ireland) 1954(4) shall apply to these Regulations as it applies to an Act of the Assembly.

Amendments to the 2002 Regulations

3.  After Regulation 4A(5)(exceptions for drugs in Schedule 1) insert—

“4B    Exceptions for gamma–butyrolactone and 1, 4–butanediol

(1) Gamma–butyrolactone and 1, 4–butanediol are excepted from sections 3(1) (import and export), 4(1) (production and supply) and 5(1) (possession) of the Act save where a person imports, exports, produces, supplies or offers to supply either substance, or has either substance in his possession, knowing or believing that it will be used for the purpose of human ingestion whether by himself or another person other than as a flavouring in food.

(2) In this regulation references to gamma–butyrolactone and 1, 4–butanediol include—

(a)any stereoisomeric form of gamma–butyrolactone or 1,4–butanediol;

(b)any salt of gamma–butyrolactone, 1,4–butanediol or of a substance specified in sub–paragraph (a) of this paragraph; and

(c)any preparation or other product containing gamma–butyrolactone, 1,4–butanediol or a substance specified in sub–paragraph (a) or (b) of this paragraph.”.

Revocation

4.  Regulation 4 of the Misuse of Drugs (Amendment) Regulations (Northern Ireland) 2009(6) is hereby revoked.

EXPLANATORY NOTE

(This note is not part of the Regulations)

These Regulations insert regulation 4B into the Misuse of Drugs Regulations (Northern Ireland) 2002 (“the 2002 Regulations”). They also revoke regulation 4 of the Misuse of Drugs (Amendment) Regulations (Northern Ireland) 2009, which was intended to insert regulation 4B, but which erroneously omitted wording from the text.

Regulation 3 inserts into the 2002 Regulations, regulation 4B. The regulation makes it lawful to import, export, produce, supply, offer to supply or possess Gamma- butyrolactone (GBL) and 1,4 -butanediol (1,4-BD) except where a person does so, knowing or believing that it will be used for the purpose of human ingestion other than as a flavouring in food.