|
Cannabis Campaigners' Guide News Database result:
|
|
Tory laughs at cannabis fines policy Nicholas Watt Guardian Friday 10 Nov 2000 Ann Widdecombe faced fresh embarrassment over her drugs policy yesterday when a frontbench colleague dismissed as absurd her plan to fine cannabis users. John Bercow, a member of Ms Widdecombe's home affairs team, reopened Tory wounds over drugs when he called for tolerance towards "dope smokers". In a New Statesman interview, he underlined Ms Widdecombe's precarious position when he laughed off her plan to impose a £100 spot fine. "The idea that the police should raid every home looking for dope smokers is transparently absurd," he said. "Personal use has effectively been decriminalised." Britain's tradition of policing by consent could be in jeopardy if Ms Widdecombe's policy were implemented. "The police are not interested in launching all-out war on soft drugs. As far as I can see, alcohol and violence are closely related. It is not clear to me that cannabis and violence are." Mr Bercow's remarks will further undermine the shadow home secretary, whose drugs policy unravelled within hours of its launch at the Tory conference last month. In effect, it was shelved by William Hague after shadow cabinet members admitted publicly that they had smoked cannabis in the past.
After you have finished reading this article you can click here to go back.
|
This page was created by the Cannabis Campaigners' Guide.
Feel free to link to this page!