LCQ7: Combating vaping of "space oil"
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Question:
"Space oil" is a kind of liquid to which harmful substances have been illegally added. Usually, its main ingredient is etomidate, an anaesthetic that can only be prescribed by a doctor according to the law. Anyone who illegally possesses and uses the substance commits an offence. It has been reported that space oil, often vaped through e-cigarettes, can produce transient euphoria and cause addiction, and has gained popularity amongst youth communities since last year, with some sellers even blatantly putting space oil up for sale on social media platforms. In this connection, will the Government inform this Council:
(1) of the respective numbers of persons arrested for illegal sale and possession of space oil in the past three years, together with a tabulated breakdown by age;
(2) whether it will bring etomidate under the control of the Dangerous Drugs Ordinance (Cap. 134); if so, of the details; if not, the reasons for that; and
(3) whether the authorities have put in place measures to prevent members of the public (especially young people) from vaping space oil by, for example, stepping up education and proactively taking law enforcement actions such as decoy operations; if so, of the details; if not, the reasons for that?
Reply:
President,
"Space oil" is a kind of liquid to which harmful substances have been illegally added and is often inhaled through electronic cigarettes (e-cigarettes). There is no standard formula for "space oil", but its main ingredient is usually etomidate, an anaesthetic which can only be prescribed by a doctor according to the law. Etomidate is regulated as Part 1 poison under the Pharmacy and Poisons Regulations (Cap. 138A). Illegal supply or use of etomidate is liable to imprisonment upon conviction. Abuse of "space oil" will cause harm to one's health and lead to addiction. It will also lure abusers to try other kinds of drugs. Taking "space oil" is equivalent to taking drugs.
My reply to the various parts of the question raised by the Hon Lam So-wai is as follows:
(1) Frontline anti-drug workers noticed an emergence of "space oil" in Hong Kong in 2023 after the COVID-19 pandemic, and it had begun to gain traction among local young people and some of them even started taking it. Records of law enforcement agencies (LEAs) have reflected the same trend. In 2023, we started to observe persons arrested for offences involving "space oil" containing etomidate by the Hong Kong Police Force and the Customs and Excise Department. The number of persons arrested in the past three years by age groups are set out at Annex.
(2) To ensure that the LEAs can effectively respond to the drug abuse situation and enhance deterrence, it is indicated in the Supplement to "The Chief Executive's 2024 Policy Address" published last week that the Government will step up control on etomidate. Specifically, we propose bringing etomidate under control of the Dangerous Drugs Ordinance (DDO) (Cap. 134). We have already consulted the Action Committee Against Narcotics (ACAN) and relevant stakeholders, with a view to listing etomidate as a dangerous drug in the first half of 2025. By then, illegal possession or smoking, inhaling, ingesting and injecting "space oil" containing etomidate is liable to a maximum penalty of seven years' imprisonment and a fine of $1 million. Trafficking or illegal import of such a substance is liable to a maximum penalty of life imprisonment and a fine of $5 million.
(3) The Government has all along been closely monitoring the trend of emerging drugs. Apart from strengthening the control on etomidate by way of legislation, the Government has taken prompt actions to combat "space oil" through reducing demand and intercepting supply.
Preventive publicity and education is the backbone of demand reduction and forms the first line of defense for our anti-drug work. Targeting the emergence of "space oil" among the youth, we have started with the school sector. First, earlier this year, the Commissioner for Narcotics from the Security Bureau (SB) wrote to all primary and secondary schools in Hong Kong alerting them to the problem of "space oil" inhaling through e‑cigarettes. In addition, the Narcotics Division (ND) of the SB is in the course of including information on the harmful effects of "space oil" in its anti-drug educational talks and interactive drama for schools.
To further enhance the vigilance against and responsiveness to "space oil" among the school sector and anti-drug community, the ND in collaboration with the Hong Kong Poison Control Centre of the Hospital Authority and a frontline social service organisation organised two seminars on the issue of "space oil" abuse in August and October with a total attendance of nearly 500 people. At the seminars, different professionals, anti-drug workers, social workers, and teaching staff from over 100 primary and secondary schools shared their observations of the abuse situation of "space oil" among young people and the related harms. There were also exchanges of views on how to prevent "space oil" abuse and handle abusers. After the seminars, the Narcotics Bureau of the Hong Kong Police Force distributed an infographic to all schools in Hong Kong. As young people often inhale "space oil" through e-cigarettes, the Chairman of the Hong Kong Council on Smoking and Health also gave a presentation on the harmful effects of e-cigarettes in one of the aforementioned seminars.
As regards publicity, to raise public awareness of the harmful effects of "space oil", a new zone dedicated to "space oil" was set up at the Hong Kong Jockey Club Drug InfoCentre in mid-September with promotional videos, publications and exhibition panels showing the harms of "space oil" on display. Since the middle of this year, the ND has been starting to publish social media posts and has launched an animated video on the harmful effects of "space oil". They serve to alert the public, in particular young people, to the harms of "space oil". The animated video has been uploaded onto the ND's website and social media platforms, and schools and anti-drug organisations have been encouraged to show it often. We will continue to work with ACAN, other departments and various sectors of the community to step up preventive education and publicity efforts in view of the "space oil" abuse situation.
To intercept the supply of "space oil", the LEAs have stepped up various inspections including cyber patrol and carried out intelligence-based law enforcement actions. For example, the Police seized 2.17 kilograms of a substance claimed to be "space oil" during the past summer. More recently in mid-October, the Police raided a residential unit in Tai Kok Tsui, which was used as a drug storage and distribution centre, resulting in the seizure of "space oil" and other drugs. Upon the commencement of control of etomidate under the DDO (Cap. 134), the LEAs will definitely step up their enforcement against all etomidate-related offences.
Ends/Wednesday, October 23, 2024
Issued at HKT 16:00
Issued at HKT 16:00
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