London Mayor Calls For Decriminalizing Cannabis Possession
London Mayor Sadiq Khan has called for the decriminalization of personal possession of natural ... More cannabis.
London Mayor Sadiq Khan on Wednesday backed the decriminalization of cannabis possession, saying that the current rules governing the drug 'cannot be justified.'
Khan made his comments following the release of a report from the independent London Drugs Commission that found that the criminalization of cannabis possession and associated policing do more harm than good. In particular, the commission determined that police stop-and-search policies disproportionately harm members of Black communities.
'I've long been clear that we need fresh thinking on how to reduce the substantial harms associated with drug-related crime in our communities,' Khan said on Wednesday, according to a report from The Guardian.
He added that the commission's report found the 'current sentencing for those caught in possession of natural cannabis cannot be justified given its relative harm and people's experience of the justice system.'
Khan argued that the report 'makes a compelling, evidenced-based case for the decriminalization of possession of small quantities of natural cannabis,' according to a report from Marijuana Moment.
The commission, led by the former Labour justice secretary Lord Falconer KC, collaborated with researchers at University College London, collecting evidence from more than 200 policy experts and academics from around the world. The commission found that classifying cannabis a Class B drug under the Misuse of Drugs Act is 'disproportionate to the harms it can pose relative to other drugs controlled by the act.'
'The sentencing options currently available, especially for personal possession, cannot be justified when balanced against the longer-term impacts of experience of the justice system, including stop and search, or of serving a criminal sentence can have on a person,' the researchers wrote in the report.
The report, titled 'The Cannabis Conundrum: A Way Forward For London,' noted that cannabis enforcement focuses on ethnic communities, the Black community in particular, 'creating damaging, long-lasting consequences for individuals, wider society, and police-community relations.'
Lord Falconer told Radio Four that 'continuing to have possession as a crime meant continuing have problems between the police and ethnic communities,' according to a report from the BBC.
'Stop and search in London for example is most commonly based on 'the smell of cannabis' and it is disproportionately used against young black men,' he said.
'The law treats cannabis the same as a whole range of much more serious drugs,' he added. 'The right course now, we think, is keep dealing criminal but make sure that possession is not a crime.'
Cannabis is currently classified as a Class B drug in the United Kingdom.
The commission emphasized that it was not advocating for the complete legalization of cannabis. While finding potential benefits of legalization, including a possible increase in tax revenue, the report stressed that the 'extent of harms, particularly with respect to public health, as well as personal and societal costs, take longer to emerge and are not yet well understood.'
The researchers said that cannabis policy should be redirected to focus on the harms associated with the drug for a minority of users.
'Those who suffer from the adverse effects of cannabis, which may be a small percentage of users but is a high number of people, need reliable, consistent medical and other support,' the report reads.
Despite the London Drugs Commission report's findings and Khan's call for decriminalization, a change in U.K. cannabis policy is unlikely in the short term. A spokesperson from the Home Office said that the government has no plans to change the legal status of cannabis.
'We will continue to work with partners across health, policing and wider public services to drive down drug use, ensure more people receive timely treatment and support and make our streets and communities safer,' the spokesperson said. 'We have no intention of reclassifying cannabis from a Class B substance under the Misuse of Drugs Act.'
Deputy Prime Minister Angela Rayner said the report's recommendations were 'not the government position and we are not going to be changing our policy.'
Hashtags
Try Our AI Features
Explore what Daily8 AI can do for you:
Comments
No comments yet...
Related Articles
News24
17 minutes ago
- News24
Russian strikes wound 12 in Ukraine
Russian strikes wounded at least 12 people; Ukraine intercepted most drones/missiles, renewing calls for air defence systems. Kyiv blames Moscow for stalled peace talks, while Zelensky emphasises air defence and seeks the support of US Patriot systems. Russia claims gains in the Donetsk region and targets Ukrainian military-industrial sites; casualties and destruction were reported. Russian strikes targeting Ukraine overnight from Saturday to Sunday wounded at least 12 people, according to local authorities, prompting Kyiv to renew calls for new air defence systems. Since its invasion in February 2022, Russia has launched near-nightly bombardments of Ukrainian towns and cities, sending barrages of drones and missiles against military and civilian targets. Talks on ending the war have stalled, with Kyiv accusing Moscow of wanting the war to drag on. Overnight, the Russian army launched 477 drones and 60 missiles of various types, according to the Ukrainian air force, which said it had intercepted 475 of the drones and 39 missiles. Ukrainian President Volodymyr Zelensky said the strikes showed that Russia's President Vladimir Putin 'long ago decided he would keep waging war, despite the world's calls for peace'. He repeated his readiness 'to buy' US-made Patriot anti-missile systems. 'Ukraine needs to strengthen its air defence - the thing that best protects lives,' Zelensky said. US President Donald Trump, who has been pushing for a rapprochement with Moscow since retaking office, has not responded to Kyiv's request. In the central Cherkasy region, the Russian strikes wounded a total of 11 people, including two children, regional governor Igor Taburets said on Telegram. Far from the front line in the western Ivano-Frankivsk region, the strikes wounded a woman who was 'taken to hospital', according to regional governor Svitlana Onyshchuk. Besides the civilian casualties, a fighter pilot was killed overnight after his F-16 jet was damaged 'without him having the time to eject', according to an air force statement. Zelensky said the pilot was trying to shoot down Russian projectiles before his death. Early on Sunday morning, a Russian drone attack killed a 60-year-old man when it hit his car in the northwest Kharkiv region, where the Russian army was on the march, according to the authorities. For its part, the Russian army said that it had captured new territory in the eastern Donetsk region and that its overnight attack hit Ukrainian military-industrial complex sites as well as oil refineries. It also said it intercepted three Ukrainian drones overnight. Also on Sunday, Russia's spy chief Sergei Naryshkin said he had a call with CIA chief John Ratcliffe. 'We agreed to call each other at any time to discuss issues of mutual interest,' Naryshkin said, without specifying details about the discussion.
Yahoo
23 minutes ago
- Yahoo
Royal Navy shadows Russian warship off Isle of Wight in security mission
Royal Navy vessels have tracked the movements of a Russian warship travelling off the Isle of Wight coast through the English Channel. HMS Mersey, a patrol ship often seen in the Solent, took over shadowing duties from Type 45 air defence destroyer HMS Duncan as the Russian corvette RFN Boikiy made its way back from deployment in the Gulf of Guinea. The operation, which involved careful monitoring of the vessel as it passed along the south coast of England, saw HMS Mersey meet the warship off the coast of the Island on Friday (June 20). A Royal Navy spokesperson confirmed that the Portsmouth-based destroyer HMS Duncan first intercepted RFN Boikiy near the French island of Ushant before the handover to HMS Mersey. Portsmouth-based destroyer HMS Duncan Recommended reading: 'Possibly the rarest bird on the Island' caught on camera in woodland 'Amazing sight' as 93-year-old's rare plant grows as high as her house The move is part of a wider effort to keep tabs on foreign naval activity in the UK's waters. Luke Pollard, Minister for the Armed Forces, said: 'Russian warships are increasingly sailing through the English Channel, and every time they do, a Royal Navy vessel will be keeping an eye on them. 'I have every confidence, as should the British public, that our Royal Navy will continue to defend our waters and keep our undersea cables safe.' The Channel has seen heightened naval attention in recent months. HMS Mersey docked in Falmouth (Image: David Barnicoat) This latest mission follows closely on the heels of a similar operation involving HMS Trent and Wildcat helicopters, which monitored the passage of Russian frigate Admiral Grigorovich past Gibraltar and through the Channel into the North Sea. Commander Daniel Lee, commanding officer of HMS Duncan, stressed the importance of these missions: 'Escorting foreign warships through waters near the UK is a vital part of our mission to protect our nation and uphold international maritime law. 'It's a clear demonstration of our commitment to ensuring the safety and security of our seas, which are so important to the lives and livelihoods of the British people.'
Yahoo
31 minutes ago
- Yahoo
Girl, six, in ‘very serious' condition after tree collapse
A six-year-old girl is in a 'very serious' condition after being caught beneath a tree which collapsed in an Essex park. A seven-year-old girl was killed and three more children sustained minor injuries and received hospital treatment after the tree fell in Chalkwell Park, Southend-on-Sea, shortly before 3pm on Saturday. Police are investigating what happened and an area has been set up for the laying of flowers and tributes. Assistant Chief Constable Lucy Morris of Essex Police said: 'Updates will be provided on the condition of the little girl who remains in hospital. 'I know many will be thinking of her today and she is in the right place, receiving urgent and around-the-clock care surrounded by her family. 'Sadly, her condition is still very serious at this time.' Dozens saw the incident and rushed to try and lift the tree, a witness said. Accountant Ishan Madan, 39, from Westcliff-on-Sea, was playing in a cricket match nearby when he heard a 'horrendous, screeching scream'. He said: 'Everyone ran towards the clubhouse, where the tree is. 'The tree had snapped and I think there were four children, the fifth one was slightly further away, I think she'd been hit by a branch. 'Two of them were under a smaller branch, they were rescued easily, and unfortunately, the other two girls, they were stuck under this massive tree. 'So we got bystanders to help, it must have been 40 to 50 people who then tried to lift the fallen tree up and to our horror, these two little girls, poor girls, were stuck underneath it. 'Their mother was on the corner. 'It was horrendous.' Mr Madan said that he had heard the children were walking on a path when the tree fell. He continued: 'You'd never think something like this could happen and there were a lot of people at our club that were shocked, including myself. 'It was horrendous. 'It was like a nightmare that you'd sort of wake up from and then someone would tell you it wasn't true. 'You couldn't imagine kids walking in the park and something like this happening.' Chief Superintendent Leighton Hammett said that those who rushed to help 'showed the best of Southend'.
