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Cannabis Campaigners' Guide News Database result:
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UK: We will fight drug menace - Blair
The BBC Friday 16 Feb 2001 Prime Minister Tony Blair has pledged to fight the "drug menace" at every level after figures revealed a sharp rise in the number of drug seizures in the UK. Some 128,000 drug offenders were either cautioned, fined or jailed in 1998 - a rise of 13% on the previous year. Mr Blair told the Commons: "There is no more serious problem than the link between crime and drugs. "Already the Government has introduced minimum sentences for drug dealers of seven years, mandatory drug testing, new drug treatment orders and an extra 220m pounds for a strategy to fight drugs. "The drug menace is one we are determined to fight at every single level, through tougher measures in the law, better provision in the courts, better education in our schools and better treatment for drug offenders." The Prime Minister's comments followed a meeting with UK drugs czar Keith Hellawell. In 1998, Mr Hellawell set out a 10-year strategy to break the link between drugs and crime, with a government spending pledge of 250m pounds over three years. He said the programme was having very positive effects despite the figures, which also showed a 25% rise in cocaine seizures and a 9% in ecstasy-type drugs seizures. Although the number of seizures of heroin and cannabis was up, the amount seized in both cases was down. The programme - which includes education of children, treatment for users and breaking the link between drugs and crime - was having very positive results, Mr Hellawell said. 710m pounds worth of drugs were seized by Customs last year "In one way these figures prove that we are clamping down on drugs with the arrest of more offenders and more seizures," he said, adding that the number of youngsters experimenting with drugs is falling. "We are concentrating on the drugs that cause most harm, such as cocaine and heroin, though this does not mean we are going soft on cannabis." Ten days ago, he said the police should stop pursuing cannabis users and focus more on hard drugs, but he stressed he did not support decriminalisation. Mr Hellawell said he was assured by Mr Blair that agencies fighting drugs would be given additional powers as required to combat the problem. "People power" was one of the strategy's biggest successes so far, he said. Initiatives such as "rat on a rat" had resulted in hundreds of drugs offenders coming to the attention of police. "We will be looking to extend this and build on its success," Mr Hellawell said. Mr Hellawell is against decriminalisation of cannabis He added that the government would be looking especially at ways of stopping the flow of drugs into the country and targeting international criminals. And to dampen down "glamorous" images of drugs in the media, Mr Hellawell has written to TV soap opera writers and talked to music industry bosses. The drugs czar is to appear at Customs and Excise's National Investigation Service office in London on Wednesday, to report on successes in combating drugs smuggling. Paymaster General Dawn Primarolo is expected to congratulate customs officers, who seized drugs with a total street value of 710m pounds in 1998. But Mr Hellawell has admitted they were no indication of the number of drugs on the streets. He will say: "One of the key performance targets of the strategy is to reduce drug-related crime by 25% by 2005 and 50% by 2008." The 10-year strategy includes: Minimum sentence of seven years for those convicted of a third offence of supplying Class A drugs such as heroin or cocaine. Extending drug-testing to identify offenders committing crime to buy drugs. Piloting of Drug Treatment and Testing Orders forcing offenders to take detoxification treatment. A 20m pounds joint initiative with the police to accelerate the development of arrest referral schemes.
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