Drugs

Drugs are the scourge of our society. Most police time is taken up with crimes that are directly or indirectly related to drugs. We have spent the last 50+ years fighting the problem in the same way and yet the street price of drugs is at an all time low. This means that more drugs are getting through and available on the streets than ever before. Also with our general attitude to crime now being almost nonexistent, there is little deterrent in selling or taking drugs.

So what if you are taking drugs - you will probably only get a caution if caught; if you are selling them and get five years, you know you will probably be out in two years (or even earlier as prison overcrowding gets worse). Either we need to lock everyone involved (addicts & dealers) with drugs up for a very long period of time (and get them off drugs before they are released) or we need another strategy. One method would be to legalise all drugs and make them available (on prescription) in the local chemist shop.

How would this solve the problem I hear you ask? OK here goes.... if people want to take drugs they will whether they are legal or illegal. If they are illegal, the only people who will supply them (by definition!) are criminals. The risks of getting caught are relatively low and the profits are high. This leads to gang warfare over turf and the rise in the number of young people getting knifed or shot in our larger cities.

Another problem is the price to be paid for drugs on the streets; usually by the very people who can usually least afford it. (It's very difficult to get or hold down a job if you are a junkie.) These poor people are dependant on the drugs - they have to have them and they have to pay for them so they have to get the money from somewhere so what do they do? Yes exactly - they burgle your house or mug you on the street. Most petty crime is drug related. This used to tie up a lot of police time but they have now realised that they don't really need to bother with it at all - just give out a crime number over the phone and let the insurance companies deal with it.

So just to recap - junkies are caught in a trap of their own making and have to steal to feed their habit; also they don't seek medical help because what they are doing is illegal. Criminals are making huge profits and often fight amongst themselves for territory and because the profits are high, they create a climate of intimidation and violence to keep everyone quiet. They also have invested their massive profits into other types of crime. This leaves the gangs protecting their turf with automatic weapons and a number of children have been shot deliberately, possibly as a revenge killing. OK so are you with me so far? Good.

Right I have waved my magic wand and drugs are now legal and available to all adults in the chemist shop. The junkies now visit Boots and get their drugs at a reasonable price - so no need to burgle and mug anymore. Not being criminals anymore they may also now feel like admitting what they are and seek help like alcoholics do. Maybe not. The criminals are now out of a job and there is no need to fight over nonexistent turf. The prisons would empty as the police see a big reduction in petty crime and this releases their talents for their more important priorities such as..... yes filling speed cameras with film....!

Ah I hear you say - now drugs are legal there will be a big rise in people taking them - it will make things worse. Well possibly but I think really unlikely. Citizens Band was illegal through the 1970's and had a big following. The government legalised it in 1981 and it fell from grace very quickly as it had lost its main appeal - it was no longer illegal. Also look at how prohibition in the USA in the 1920's had the opposite effect to what the government expected - criminals just moved in to supply the demand.

The huge amount of public money released could be used to fund some serious drug education in schools. Just think how life would change for the better for the vast majority of people. Even the ones that choose to remain on drugs at least won't be burgling their neighbours! Life on the squalid, run down housing estates would improve immensely. Treatment for those that really wanted to kick their habit could easily be paid for out the savings - those that didn't could remain on the drug at minimal cost to society. The main point is that those taking drugs would only be harming themselves, NOT any innocent person and criminals would no longer get rich.

If you are still not convinced then consider this - we have had the same drugs policy for at least 50 years and the street price of drugs has fallen consistently - so current drugs policy is not working is it? A lot of police officers agree with legalising drugs although it would be career suicide for them to admit this publicly. So let's at least try something else before we condemn it out of hand.

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