Scots Say No To Legalising Drugs

April 26, 1998 - Scotland on Sunday - Letters_sos@scotsman.com

Survey reveals majority opposed to changes in the law despite current campaign to decriminilise cannabis By James Murray Home Affairs Editor

Scotland is firmly against the decriminilisation of drugs, according to a new survey published today which shows a significant majority opposing more liberal attitudes.

While 68% of people in the UK are against any compromise on illegal drugs, in Scotland the figure is 72%.

David Macauley, campaign director of Scotland Against Drugs, said: "These figures show that most people share the common view that it is right that certain drugs should be illegal because they have been proved to be harmful to the user and to society as a whole."

A recently initiated campaign to legalise cannabis culminated in a march by 11,000 people in London last month, but their efforts appear to have made little impact. Macauley added: "We have long been convinced that our approach reflects the views of the silent majority and this survey has at last given them a chance to speak out. We are greatly encouraged."

The market research company Taylor Nelson Sofres asked more than 1,000 people, including 108 in Scotland, which drugs should be illegal for recreational use and the results were: alcohol 14%, cannabis 62%, cocaine 83%, heroin 85%, opium 72%, speed 76%, and Valium 55%. Some 55% also felt that drug laws were too lenient with 33% saying they were "about right". Just 32% believed it was acceptable to use cannabis for medical purposes.

Further evidence of the damage caused by drugs is revealed today in a report by Britain's largest drug charity, Turning Point, which announced the number of people they helped last year shot up by 12% to almost 30,000.

Not only were more drug users in need of treatment, but they were younger than ever. At one centre in London more than half the people seen were under 18. The charity revealed an alarming increase in the use of the heroin substitute methadone with the number of people using it illegally doubling.

There was also a 50% rise in ecstasy-related problems and a 37% increase in people taking crack cocaine, quantities of which were recently seized by police in Aberdeen.

Turning Point's chief executive Rex Hewitt said: "Our findings do not make happy reading. The hallmark of drug abuse is all too often no job, no home, contact with the criminal justice system, social isolation and health problems."

The survey and the new report come as the government prepares to launch its UK-wide drugs strategy under the so-called drugs tsar, former chief constable Keith Hellawell. A white paper being presented to the Commons tomorrow will outline a new approach, modelled largely on existing Scottish policy.

The government will for the first time acknowledge the link between social deprivation and drug use, and will bring in efforts to tackle drug-related crime at its source with expanded treatment programmes for addicts.

"The research we have seen shows that treatment works," said one senior source. "We are keen to make sure we move from a situation where we are mopping up the consequences of drugs to tackling the problem in the first place."

Statistics demonstrate that of offenders who are referred for treatment, one in four had stopped using drugs six months later and most of the rest reported some reduction in their drug use. The average cost of a drug habit among those treated fell from £400 a week to £70 a week, with a corresponding fall in the levels of criminality.

The new strategy will examine whether different departments are tackling drugs effectively, but will also acknowledge that the evryday conditions of many users contributed to their habits.

Downing Street sources said that Tony Blair had been appalled to learn of the extent to which the drugs crisis was undermining everyday lives.

"The Prime Minister was shocked to learn that the global trade in drugs is now worth some $400bn a year - equal to 8% of world trade or the entire spending on world tourism - and that there are between 100,000 and 200,000 drug addicts in Britain," said an aide.

However, Blair has ruled out any extra resources for the drugs tsar or for other departments fighting drugs, such as customs and excise. "The drugs tsar is there to ensure our policy is coherent and effective," said a spokesman.

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