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Cannabis Campaigners' Guide News Database result:
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UK: Editorial: Make Cannabis Legal Now
Independent on Sunday
Sunday 10 Mar 2002 The Government's drug advisers are set to call for the legal downgrading of cannabis - a step which will mean that possession of the drug will no longer be an arrestable offence. This was one of the key demands of this newspaper's campaign for decriminalisation. Reclassification of cannabis to a class C drug is the first step towards a more enlightened approach to drugs in Britain. When we began our campaign, it was widely deemed daring or even dangerous. It is heartening how quickly the national debate on drugs has matured. What was then seen as a minority view now has the support of a Home Secretary not otherwise known for liberal tendencies and a substantial number of senior figures in both opposition parties. Even an initially sceptical Tony Blair has been won over by David Blunkett's arguments that too much police time and money is wasted pursuing cannabis users. We have always maintained that a harsh approach to cannabis is counterproductive because it makes criminals of otherwise law-abiding people. The Misuse of Drugs Act must be the most flouted piece of legislation in British history. The Government should now show that it has the courage of its convictions and formally decriminalise the drug. The Liberal Democrats' decision yesterday to make such a move party policy is an example to follow. That party's further recommendations that Ecstasy be reclassified and those who commit drug-related crimes should not face prison may be moves too far. But they remind us of the importance of continually reviewing our thinking on drugs. The present situation is highly unsatisfactory. More school-age children are using the drug by the year, so the Just Say No message is clearly not getting through. The illegality of cannabis has also meant that, in acquiring the drug, teenagers were likely to be exposed to other, more harmful substances. Certainly, there must be strong disincentives to supplying drugs to children. But there is no point in kidding ourselves that the present restrictions are having a deterrent effect: they are not. The messages sent by successive governments on drugs have been distrusted because they lacked frankness. Minimising harm should be the watchwords of policy-makers. We said that at the start of our campaign. The message has finally been heard.
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