CHAPTER 8: Structure-specific Generic Legislation

The first international generic controls were made in the early 20th century as a means of restricting the supply of esters of morphine other than diamorphine. This and similar controls would be incorporated in the United Nations Single Convention on Narcotic Drugs of 1961. In the United Kingdom (UK), attempts were made in 1964 to control a range of anorectic drugs, mostly based on the phenethylamine skeleton, using a generic definition. Although that was ultimately unsuccessful, other generic legislation was introduced into the Misuse of Drugs Act 1971. The first of these definitions covered, inter alia, derivatives of cannabinols, ecgonine and lysergamide. In 1977 a definition was added that focussed on ring-substituted phenethylamines even though the targets of interest, which included MDMA and its many relatives, would not appear on the illicit market in the UK for another ten years. From the 1980s a wide range of structure-specific controls would be introduced to encompass anabolic/androgenic steroids, barbiturates, benzofurans and related compounds, N-benzylphenethylamines, cathinones, fentanyls (aka fentanils), pethidines and alphaprodine derivatives, phenyl- and benzylpiperazines, phenylcyclohexylamine derivatives, pipradrol derivatives, synthetic cannabinoid receptor agonists and tryptamines.