A poll recently commissioned by Lib Dems for Drug Policy Reform and conducted by Vision Critical shows that 70 per cent of people are in favour of cannabis being legalised.
A poll recently commissioned by Lib Dems for Drug Policy Reform and conducted by Vision Critical shows that 70 per cent of people are in favour of cannabis being legalised. It also shows that more people are in favour of legalising amphetamines (speed), magic mushrooms and mephedrone (the drug recently banned by the government) than are in favour of keeping them prohibited.
For ecstasy there is still a small majority in favour of prohibition (54%) but 39% are in favour of legalisation in some form. Even heroin and cocaine have around a third of people who want to see them legalised. What these findings show is not just that over two thirds of people think that cannabis should be legal, it is that even across other drugs there is not a huge consensus in favour of prohibition either.
At the very least this could be interpreted as there being scope for a proper debate about the future of drugs policy that includes all options and that such an approach would not be as “politically toxic” as many politicians seem to fear. This poll should go some way towards reassuring them that this is not the case.
The poll took a slightly different approach to previous ones in this field. It outlines three scenarios, “Light regulation”, “Strict government control and regulation” and “Prohibition”. It then detailed what each of those categories mean and asked people to say which category they thought a number of currently legal and prohibited drugs should go into.
Some of the demographic breakdown information from the results is interesting too. For example, there is no significant difference between the three different age ranges (18-34, 35-54, 55+) across the different drugs and categories people want to see. There is also little difference between supporters of the main parties; perhaps the results of this poll could be interpreted as giving “permission” for politicians to have that full and open debate.
You can read more information including a more detailed breakdown of the poll methodology and results here. You can also view an interview I conducted back in January with Professor David Nutt, former head of the Advisory Council on the Misuse of Drugs which touched upon some of the issues raised by this poll here.
28 Responses to “Poll shows 70% of people in the UK think cannabis should be legalised”
Mark Thompson
Mr Sensible – Your criteria seems to be that things should be permitted if there are some health benefits. And if there are not then people should be subject to prosecution and ultimately prison for doing them.
Firstly, that is a pretty illiberal approach by any stretch. The idea that we should imprison people for doing things that are perhaps not very good for them is very hard to reconcile with a free society.
Secondly, by your measure lots of things that are currently legal should be made illegal with penalty of imprisonment as the ultimate sanction. I would suggest if we take your idea to its logical conclusion then all of the following should be banned as they are things people enjoy that do not have any real health benefits and in some cases have a significant risk of adverse health consequences: Cigarettes, Sky diving, Quad biking, Deep fried Mars bars, sledging and loud music.
I am also dubious about your justification for keeping alcohol legal within the “Mr Sensible” framework. There are some studies show small amounts of alcohol can be good in some ways but plenty of other studies that show alcohol overall is damaging for health. I would suggest by your scheme that to be consistent and err on the side of what you perceive to be caution (like you are doing with all currently illegal drugs) that it should be banned too.
Your comment about it being “better” to get people off drugs. Well firstly there is lots of evidence to show that people will only abstain from any drugs they might be addicted to when they are ready. It is very counter-productive to try and force them to go clean. Also, in 1971 when the current drugs laws cam into force there were at most a few thousand heroin addicts in the UK. There are now over 200,000 of them. So if what you want it to get people off drugs then by that measure the current legal regime has utterly failed. Therefore you should surely agree that the time has come to try something else?
Have a look at what has happened in Portugal since 2001 when all drugs there were decriminalised. Use across all categories has fallen and the number of people seeking help for their problems with drugs has rocketed. They’re not afraid of being arrested any more for doing so you see.
Jonny
I voted for lib dems purely on this issue. When Cameron became leader of the Cons, he said he supported legislation. Why isn’t this being pushed, or even talked about? Legalise recreational drugs, and put addictive “hard” drugs on prescription. The benefits to society would be massive.
uglyfatbloke
But 100% of political parties think that pot-smokers (including those with medical needs) should be persecuted in line with Daily Mail policy. How nice.