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United Future leader says Tanczos should resign

"Mr Tanczos was elected by the voters of New Zealand to be a lawmaker, not a lawbreaker," Mr Dunne said today.

"By his own admission, Mr Tanczos habitually breaks the law in relation to smoking cannabis," he said.

"He is now involved in a seemingly obsessive campaign to make dope smoking retrospectively compulsory and is part-owner and director of a shop that sells drugs which are regarded around the world as hazardous to public health."

Mr Tanzcos would not resign, his spokesman said today.

He was aware of what Mr Dunne had said, and was unconcerned.

It was reported yesterday "legal highs" exodus and frenzy were sold in capsule form in the Hemp Store in Auckland, which Mr Tanczos partly owns and is a director of.

The Health Ministry was monitoring the issue, while police were understood to be concerned about the effects of the supplements.

Mr Tanczos said yesterday there was "no issue here".

"Having one of these supplements is similar to having ... a decent coffee," he said.

"But just as I don't think children should be sold high caffeine energy drinks, the Hempstore has always had a voluntary R18 restriction on these supplements," he said.

"Of course if the Health Ministry didn't think they should be on sale, we wouldn't sell them."

The active ingredients in exodus are the chemicals BZP (benzylpiperazine) and TFMPP (trifluoromethylphenylpiperazine), and frenzy contains BZP.

The United States Drug Enforcement Administration this month emergency scheduled BZP and TFMPP under the Controlled Substances Act "to avoid an imminent hazard to public safety".

Mr Dunne said the behaviour of Mr Tanczos was not acceptable for any responsible MP.

Mr Tanczos, a Rastafarian, has said he sometimes smokes cannabis for religious reasons, although he has never explained exactly what those reasons are.

That was unacceptable, Mr Dunne said.

"If ritual murder were part of his religion, he would not be allowed to break the law forbidding homicide.

"Mr Tanczos is happy to take the taxpayers' money as an MP, but he is not prepared to follow the rules that all citizens are obliged to."