Peers recommend decriminalisation of drugs
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According to a new report by The All-Party Parliamentary Group on Drug Policy Reform (APPG), the possession and use of illegal drugs should be decriminalised.
The report describes the current system as simply being unable to cope as new ‘legal highs’ appear about every six days.
One of their recommendations is that those drugs which pose the least risk should be regulated and sold in shops. The claim is that if drugs are properly regulated then they will be safer and any risks will be minimised by making information available.
The picture painted by the report is of a failing battle against drugs which has been unable to combat drug addiction and crime and only served to criminalise and marginalise drug users.
"The Misuse of Drugs Act is counter-productive in attempting to reduce drug addiction and other drug harms to young people," said group chairwoman Baroness Meacher.
Current situation
The current situation is that 60 million ecstasy tables are sold each year and this money is often funnelled back into criminal activity.
Cannabis is the most commonly used drug in the UK with 2 to 5 million regular users and a further 15 million people admitting they have taken it in the past.
Evidence suggests a strong link between drugs and. Between a third and a half of all acquisitive crime – typically shoplifting, burglary, and robbery – is drug related and the cost of drug-related crime in England and Wales is around £14bn a year.
The Home Office estimates that three quarters of crack and heroin addicts steal to fund their habit.
Possible effects of decriminalisation
The report cites evidence from Portugal where, under a form of decriminalisation, there has been a fall in the number of young addicts.
But the opposite seems to be true in the US where abuse of legal prescription drugs has become a national epidemic.
Prescription drugs now surpass motor vehicle accidents as the number one cause of accidental death in almost half of US states, with over 15,000 people dying from overdosing on legal substances.
Just last month, David Cameron ruled out a royal commission to consider the decriminalisation and legalisation of banned drugs, on the grounds that the government's approach was working. According to official figures, drug use in England and Wales is at its lowest rate for over 15 years.
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