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Mowlam queries pot 'gateway'

The Guardian

Monday 06 Nov 2000

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Author: Patrick Wintour, chief political correspondent


The Cabinet Office minister, Mo Mowlam, yesterday denied cannabis was a
"gateway" drug which could lead to heroin abuse and claimed alcohol was
potentially far more damaging.

Ms Mowlam, who is responsible for the government's drug policy
coordination, said there was no scientific evidence that proved the
gateway theory.

Her views clash with the home secretary, Jack Straw, who has said
cannabis is in itself harmful and leads to use of harder drugs.

Ms Mowlam - who is known to hold more liberal views on cannabis
legislation - also praised the recent Runciman report which called for
the depenalisation of cannabis possession.

She also urged greater consistency between forces in the handling of
cases of possession of cannabis, suggesting the uneven rate of
prosecutions was unhelpful. Last year 2,838 people went to prison for
cannabis possession.

She was speaking on BBC TV's On The Record in advance of Wednesday's
publication of the government's annual drugs report.

She intends to use the publication to highlight the success of the
government's drug testing and treatment orders (DTTOs), a scheme which
requires criminals to undertake drug treatment as an alternative to a
custodial sentence.

The use of orders, now going nationwide, appears to be reducing
offenders' reliance on drugs.

Research published last week shows that of the 288 offenders in three
pilot areas made subject to a DTTO, the average weekly spend on drugs
showed a 94% fall from £400 in the month before the arrest to £34 in the
first few weeks of the order.

In total 210 offenders were sentenced to a DTTO, nearly three quarters
of offenders recommended to the court for an order.

The orders are available to offenders aged 16 and over found guilty of
offences leading to custodial sentences ranging between six months and
three years.

 

 

 

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