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UK: Livingstone backs cannabis plans
The Guardian Thursday 11 Jul 2002 Ken Livingstone today praised the government for having "raised their game" in the war against drugs by reclassifying cannabis as less dangerous. The London mayor said the government had made the right choice in reclassifying cannabis from class B to class C. He said: "For 20 years I have been listening to British and American politicians talking about a war on drugs but each year we end up with more drugs and the drugs cartels making more money. "I think that the government must be congratulated on this. They have raised their game against drugs." Speaking in Brixton, south London, where police have adopted an experimental "softly, softly" approach to cannabis, he said a more detailed analysis from the police and the Home Office was needed before any possible decision to expand the programme could be made. But he added: "The experiment in Brixton has so far been very successful. "It has released more officers so they are able to go after people peddling lethal drugs." Mr Livingstone was in Brixton to launch an £80,000 scheme to boost the beauty and number of the capital's open spaces. He pledged to turn 100 shabby or neglected public places, such as disused car parks or local squares, into havens of tranquillity within five years. The money has been ring-fenced for this year from his architecture and urbanism unit led by Lord Rogers. Extra funding will come from local organisations which are set to benefit from the project. Ten pilot projects were announced today. They will be revamped by using more trees, improving access, and better design. Lord Rogers said: "Squares can be the living room of the community. "It should be civilised and somewhere that people can gather. It can be somewhere that you can have festivals and you can feel like it is your own space." Mr Livingstone said that revamping open spaces would increase the places where people could meet, feel confident and feel secure.
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