Substances Not Listed in the International Conventions

Abstract

As of late 2020, 830 new psychoactive substances had been reported to the EMCDDA Early Warning System since 1997. While the UK and some other legislatures have resorted to generic or analogue control to restrict the availability of these substances, the United Nations (UN) drug control treaties and the legislation in many countries are based on a specific, i.e., substance-by-substance listing. Furthermore, the UN and others require a detailed risk assessment for every substance controlled. At a time when new substances were appearing globally at the rate of two or more every week, it is unsurprising that specific listing must be limited to those relatively few substances that are thought to be the most harmful, prevalent and persistent. It follows that there is a large group of psychoactive substances that remain uncontrolled at the international level. Some of these were first encountered many years ago, some never amounted to a significant social problem and many are little more than chemical curiosities that have been created by clandestine chemists as potential drugs of misuse. Experience shows that few will ever be widely consumed, but since the detailed pharmacological properties and commercial attractiveness of these unlisted substances are often uncertain, it is almost impossible to predict which might gain traction amongst drug users.