A Montrose councillor has expressed deep concerns after it emerged legal highs are still being sold in the town.
David May has now contacted the police and the council’s environmental health department after worried residents brought the matter to his attention.
The town’s legal highs store High Life closed its doors recently and was replaced by a new shop called Evapeolution which sells e-cigarettes.
However, it has emerged that the same staff are working in Evapeolution and legal highs are still being sold from the High Street outlet.
Mr May said: “I was delighted to hear High Life was closing but it appears to have been reopened again under a different guise.
“It would appear from anecdotal evidence that the shop is continuing to sell very similar products as it was before. I would now call on them to realise the adverse effect selling these things can have.
“Although they are legal, some of them are absolutely lethal. I have been back in touch with the police and environmental health but they are limited in what they can do.
“There is legislation but once a component is made illegal they simply tweak the ingredients.”
Last month three Taysiders were admitted to hospital after overdosing on a legal high called phenibut, giving them heart problems and confusion for 36 hours.
The store’s workers say the products, which they call “medical research powders”, are not meant for human consumption.
Lyn Torrance, of the Montrose Against Legal Highs Facebook page, said the shop’s claims were “laughable”.
She said: “I am angry about the whole thing and something has to be done. They are still selling these substances and now the fight needs to be stepped up a bit.”
Staff in Evapeolution, however, said that they were unconcerned about the group campaigning against them.
One worker at the shop, who did not wish to be named, said: “The reason we shut the last shop was because we wanted to change into an e-cigarette shop.
“We sell medical research powders, but they are not for human consumption. What we do is totally legal, so why would I be concerned?
“If people misused the substances then I would have concerns, but people buying them are smart enough to know they are not for human consumption.”