REFORMING THE LAWS

More than a third of people claim to have taken illegal drugs during
their lifetime, and 10 per cent say they have done so in the last
year. Efforts to restrict drug use have failed to curb high rates of
consumption in the UK. Though use of heroin and crack cocaine is
comparable to other countries, use of recreational drugs is higher.

Britain had a relatively liberal approach to drugs in the 1960s, with
heroin prescribed to addicts. The 1971 Misuse of Drugs Act introduced
"ABC" classification: Class A drugs such as heroin carry the highest
penalties, with lesser penalties for class B and C drugs.

But evidence has shown policies based on enforcement alone have
failed. In 2002, the Home Affairs Select Committee, which included the
future Tory leader, David Cameron, said this was the "single lesson"
that had come from the previous 30 years. It backed a proposal by
David Blunkett, former Home Secretary, to downgrade cannabis to class
C.

A trial relaxation of the laws on cannabis went ahead in Lambeth,
south London, where police guidance was changed from arresting and
charging people for possession of small amounts of cannabis, to
focusing on dealers. The experiment was extended nationwide with the
reclassification of cannabis in 2004. The Government is now
considering a proposal for a new lower threshold for a presumption of
supply, which sources suggest could be 5g of cannabis and 5 tablets of
ecstasy. The proposal has been criticised by the Advisory Council on
the Misuse of Drugs as a retrograde step that will lead to more police
time being spent on users rather than dealers.