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UK: MP Voices Concerns On Drugs Policy

Southern Daily Echo

Saturday 22 Jan 2005

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YOUNG people could be lured into experimenting with deadly illegal
drugs because the government is sending out "mixed messages", claims a
Hampshire MP.

Desmond Swayne, pictured, said the decision to downgrade cannabis from
Class B to C and reduce penalties for possessing the drug could lead
youngsters to believe other narcotics, such as heroin, were safe.

Mr Swayne, Tory MP for New Forest West, said: "The price of drugs has
fallen dramatically. That disincentive seems to have been removed.

"Meanwhile, the reclassification of cannabis, the entry drug of
choice, has left consumers - if we can call them that - with a mixed
message.

"That is: they will not be prosecuted for holding supplies for their
own consumption, but that the supply remains entirely in criminal
hands. Is that not the worst of all possible worlds?"

Home Secretary Charles Clarke replied: "I do not think there is a
mixed message. On the contrary, the message is very clear. People
should not consume drugs."

Mr Swayne raised the issue during the second reading of the Drugs Bill
in the House of Commons. The Bill would allow police to X-ray
suspected dealers who swallow drugs to hide them, and introduce
tougher penalties for those caught peddling drugs near a school or
using children as couriers.

 

 

 

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