Reynhard Sinaga used GHB – but the date rape drug we should be most worried about is alcohol

While the renewed interest in the drug Sinaga used is welcome, it has also diverted attention from one so familiar we've forgotten how dangerous it is

The profile of GHB as a date rape drug was raised on Tuesday by the revelation that Reynhard Sinaga – described by the Crown Prosecution Service (CPS) as “the most prolific rapist in British legal history” – had used the substance on his victims; the BBC has even described the drug as the “rapist’s weapon of choice”.

Indeed, GHB has properties useful to those intending to commit sexual assault: with careful dosing, it can leave the victim unable to escape, or even recall the violation that has taken place.

However, there is a far more common drug used in rape: alcohol. Like GHB, alcohol lends itself to this type of crime, lowering inhibitions and, in the right doses, eliminating memories. Women are more susceptible to memory loss due to alcohol than men, a gender difference convenient for a crime mostly perpetrated against women by men.

Of course, alcohol not only reduces victims’ ability to refuse unwanted sexual advances, it also reduces perpetrators’ inhibitions in carrying out sexual assaults.

So while the renewed interest in GHB prompted by Sinaga’s case is welcome, it has also diverted attention from a drug so familiar that we have forgotten how it continues to be abused by rapists: alcohol is estimated to be a factor in nearly half of American students’ reports of sexual assaults.

Yet when we think of alcohol-facilitated rape, we almost always think of extreme cases, not the more everyday cases in which consent is compromised by the chemical, when the perpetrator merely “takes advantage” of the individual under the influence of the drug. But engaging in sex with someone unable to give full consent constitutes rape, and the legality of the drug doesn’t justify the offence.

This renewed attention to the role GHB played in Sinaga’s attacks will no doubt see many people become hyper-vigilant about whether their drinks have been spiked. While the advice about not leaving drinks unattended or sticking to bottled drinks is prudent, it can give a false sense of security about alcohol, a drug that, even without being spiked, can make people vulnerable to sexual assault.

Adding to the panic about GHB, home secretary Priti Patel wasted no time in announcing a review of the controls in place for the drug. While this might help give the impression that the government is doing something about the issue, it is little more than a political veneer. For apart from the fact that tightening controls on the GHB would unlikely deter those who use it to date rape, doing so would again divert attention away from the more common chemical culprit in rape cases.

Now would be an opportunistic moment for the home secretary to draw attention to the role alcohol plays in sexual assault – but given the long-standing and cozy relationship between the alcohol industry and government (both red and blue), that’s unlikely. Until that relationship breaks down, sexual assaults facilitated by alcohol will continue.

Ian Hamilton is a health scientist at the University of York.