More action on synthetic pot urged in WA

KEY MOMENTS IN THE FIGHT AGAINST SYNTHETIC CANNABIS IN WESTERN AUSTRALIA

June 2011:

Kronic is banned in prisons after the state government says it is rife within the system. WA becomes the first state or territory to ban synthetic cannabis sold under such names, adding them to the state's Poisons Acts. Within days a 30-year-old man is the first person charged.

August 2011:

Police investigate whether the death of a 38-year-old man is linked to his smoking Kronic Black Label. He suffers a suspected cardiac arrest and later dies. A further 14 synthetic cannabis products are added to the ban list

November 2012:

Police seize kilograms of Venom, marketed as a "legal high", during searches of two premises in Perth's south. A tobacco retailer says the drug is popular with mine workers as it can't be detected in drug tests.

June 2014:

Liberal MP Phil Edman says legislation can't keep up with manufacturers, who use a legal loophole by altering a product's chemical composition. Edman gets a staffer to buy them in the Rockingham area.

May 2015:

State government announces stronger laws to close the legal loophole.

October 2015:

Misuse of Drugs Amendment (Psychoactive Substances) Bill 2015 passed in parliament.

March 2016:

Federal member for Perth Alannah MacTiernan raises concerns in parliament about a "lucrative business thriving in plain sight of law enforcement", Cloud 9, saying police are not taking enough action.