Sacked government adviser considers legal action

Posted 14/02/2011

A government advisor who was sacked for failing to disclose a report containing potentially controversial views has said he is thinking of taking legal action.

Dr Hans Christian Raabe was appointed to the Advisory Council on the Misuse of Drugs (ACMD) last month in order to provide information about harmful substances from the point of view of a GP.

He was removed from his position after it was emerged that he had authored a report in 2005 linking homosexuality and child sex offences.

However, Dr Raabe claims that he was only following up previous research which made the same point, including a Home Office report that cited a study claiming that “20 to 33 per cent of child sexual abuse is homosexual in nature”.

He said he is thinking of taking legal action against the Home Office because he feels as though “my personal and professional reputation has been shamefully destroyed by the government for saying something it says itself”.

The Home Office maintains that Dr Raabe’s failure to disclose the report raises questions about his credibility for the ACMD.

Established under the Misuse of Drugs Act 1971, the ACMD is an independent expert body that advises the government on drug-related issues in the UK.