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UK: `Legalise drugs' call silences councillors
Diana Worthy This Is Wimbledon
Wednesday 07 Aug 2002 Councillors fell unusually silent last week, after one of their colleagues made an astonishing call for the legalisation of all drugs during a full meeting of Merton Council. Labour Councillor Mickey Spacey, who represents St Helier ward, made the comment during a debate on crime, saying police spent too much time on victimless crimes "like drug offences". He said: "Without exception, all the youths I've spoken to have all tried some sort of drug legal or illegal although a lot of the boys are actually anti-smoking. A lot of problems we've got would be solved if we legalised all drugs. "Sooner or later it's going to happen. The sooner it does, the sooner the police will have the resources to help them in other areas." Conservative Councillor Samantha George broke the shocked silence of the council chamber by condemning her colleague's comments. She said: "I am surprised about his comments on the legalisation of drugs. "They are the cause of great numbers of crime in the area, as people commit crimes to fund drug habits. "I am upset about the decriminalisation of cannabis soft drugs lead to hard drugs." Superintendent Stephen Grainger, at Wimbledon Police, said there were pockets throughout the borough where there was evidence of illegal drug taking but investigations were "intelligence-led". He said police did not spend the majority of time investigating drug crimes in Merton. He did not wish to comment directly on Councillor Spacey's call for legalisation of all drugs but said: "Yes, we are in the 21st century and the Home Office has made a decision to reduce cannabis to a class C drug." Councillor Danny Connellan, deputy leader of the ruling Labour group on Merton Council, said Coun Spacey's views on drugs were not shared by the Labour group or the Labour party as a whole.
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