EFFECT OF DRUG LAW QUESTIONED

Removing criminal penalties for cannabis possession might not lead to
increased drug use, a report published in the British Journal of Psychiatry
has found.

The study, sponsored by the United States RAND Drug Policy Research Centre,
notes that a far greater percentage of Americans aged 12 and older (33 per
cent) reported having tried cannabis than their Dutch counterparts (16 per
cent).

This was despite the sale and possession of the drug being permitted in the
Netherlands.

Dutch figures also indicated that decriminalisation appeared to have some
success in separating cannabis from the hard-drug market. Similar findings
were noted in Italy and Spain.

The authors concluded: "Our judgement, based on review of the research
literature, is that at present the primary harms of marijuana use come from
criminalisation. This prohibition inflicts harms directly and is costly."