London Drugs Commission to look at legalising cannabis

When I was a teenager in the 80s I had a legalise cannabis patch on my leather jacket , I'd never used cannabis at that time but my opinion was that as with alcohol it should be a choice , I still believe that and have seen false dawns come and go in relation to decriminalisation but with trends changing around the world I think now is a good time to have the debate.

London mayor Sadiq Khan has been visiting a cannabis dispensary in California (nice work if you can get it) looking into the pro's and con's of legalisation while back in England a panel he has set up will look into the finer aspects of changing the policy on Cannabis.

Sadiq is establishing a London Drugs Commission of independent experts and leading figures from the fields of criminal justice, public health, politics, community relations and academia to examine the effectiveness of our drugs laws, with a particular focus on cannabis. The Commission will not consider Class A drugs.

Lord Charlie Falconer QC has been chosen to lead the Commission as it gathers evidence from around the world on the approach taken to cannabis, the best methods of prevention, the most effective criminal justice responses, and the public health benefits of different approaches.

University College London (UCL) has been appointed to provide world-class evidence-based research and assessment to the Commission on the criminal justice, health and economic implications for any potential change in policy.

Following its work, the Commission will make a series of policy recommendations for City Hall, the Government, the police, the criminal justice system and public health services.
www.london.gov.uk...#:~:text=Sadiq%20is%20establishing%20a%20London,not%20 consider%20Class%20A%20drugs.

a reply to: gortex

I believe all the opposition to it is based on false information. Alcohol is worse yet it's legal.
When you drink to the point of being buzzed, you will be well on your way to drunk. If you smoke, you will be as high as you are going to get a few minutes after smoking, and in a few hours, you will be back to base.

That's not saying drugs aren't bad, just that if one is legal, the other should have already been. (IMHO)

It needs legalising, then the money they save from raids on farms/home grows they can spend on keeping the illegals from crossing the channel, just my opinion.

a reply to: Moohide

I think small home grows will be part of the deal , the industry to support that is already in place due to legal grey areas , it's not illegal to sell or buy cannabis seeds in this country but it is illegal to germinate them.

originally posted by: network dude
a reply to: gortex

I believe all the opposition to it is based on false information. Alcohol is worse yet it's legal.(IMHO)

Given how bad the Brits get when they are drunk, I dread to think of what it would be like if they were high as well.

originally posted by: network dude
a reply to: gortex

I believe all the opposition to it is based on false information.

This isn't really a thing for me, but since it's you ....

Link 1
Link 2

originally posted by: gortex
a reply to: Moohide

I think small home grows will be part of the deal , the industry to support that is already in place due to legal grey areas , it's not illegal to sell or buy cannabis seeds in this country but it is illegal to germinate them.

I can see how this is going to go:

First they decriminalize it, then they tax it, then they regulate it to such an extend that small growers are put out of business and only Big Tobacco can afford to meet all of the new standards.

Next thing you know, they'll start raiding the home growers again on the insistence of tobacco lobbyists.

a reply to: AaarghZombies

lots of late night chocolate eating and pizza eating, weed does not generally make the smoker want to bare their ass in public or throw up on the pavement, stoners usually just chill and watch late night TV.

I am all for legalisation, lets not forget the medicinal benefits of weed, people with chronic pain and other conditions benefit from it as oppossed to pharma produce drugs and there side effects

roll it up, light it up, inhale and exhale

originally posted by: AaarghZombies

originally posted by: network dude
a reply to: gortex

I believe all the opposition to it is based on false information. Alcohol is worse yet it's legal.(IMHO)

Given how bad the Brits get when they are drunk, I dread to think of what it would be like if they were high as well.

I get what you say about 'some' drunk brits, but where i live its the alcoholics, dust heads and crack/smack heads that cause the most mither.

The smokers i know keep themselves to themselves and friends, and when they do they do drink its not the same as a normal drinker and try to avoid trouble.

The thing that identifies the smokers is the smell, and its that that annoys most people
.

I am shocked-I actually agree with something the London mayor said.

I bet rates of weekend violent crime would decrease and the cops would have more resources to go after actual criminals instead of harrassing people for just trying to chill out.

Plus if they let people grow a few plants legally they could break the profits/demand which are now exploited by often violent criminal gangs.

Sadly of course if the government do decide to eventually legalise it-they will likley f# it up and make the situation worse as thats just how they roll.

a reply to: gortex

Doesn't go far enough for me but.....T&C prevent me from saying any more.

One things certain, current policies and legislation don't work, are archaic and are based on ignorance and a desire to impose one set of morals on others.

I used to smoke a bit of weed but it just seems to wanker me nowadays.
Not a problem for most people I know who partake.

Khan's a knobhead but I think he's taking a step down the right road on this and at least its helping create the public debate it so desperately needs.

Oops, double post.

As someone who has run the gambit of substance abuse sadly I’ve done almost literally everything in a pursuit to numb myself. I can say cannabis is lesser of all the evils. It is so far removed from the other substances we abuse that I would liken it to coffee or tea. Your more likely to die from coffee tho…..crazy I know.

You can become addicted naturally like any other substance, activity, or sensation. But that’s more human nature then the substances fault.

Legal cannabis usually drastically reduces opioid use in the area as well. People find a safer pain killer that’s easier to manage and often never find the need for anything stronger.

I don’t even use cannabis anymore my vice is black coffee now. 3+ years sober now.

a reply to: gortex

The idiot Muslim Khan has no power to change any laws,let alone drug laws.
We all know he's soft on crime,especially if committed by his Muslim brothers.They tend to not work and smoke weed due to not partaking in alcohol.
He has more need to do some work on stopping brown men and boys stabbing each other in the streets of Londonstan.

a reply to: Moohide

They positively encourage the dingy people invasion.
The RNLI has lost loads of donations from older people I've spoken too for being their taxi service while entering the country illegally.
Labour and the Tories love the illegal immigrants, neither have done anything about it.12 years the Tories have had and its increasing year on year.
Don't get me started on the legal immigrants from sub saharan Africa sneaked in during covid lockdowns.

a reply to: glen200376

wait, what ?

Muslims tend not to work?

originally posted by: UpThenDown
a reply to: AaarghZombies



roll it up, light it up, inhale and exhale

Careful about promoting that ideology on ATS.
You might get treaded on.

a reply to: glen200376

"They tend to not work and smoke weed due to not partaking in alcohol."

Do you actually know any Muslims?

Apparently not.

originally posted by: UpThenDown
a reply to: AaarghZombies

lots of late night chocolate eating and pizza eating, weed does not generally make the smoker want to bare their ass in public or throw up on the pavement, stoners usually just chill and watch late night TV.

I am all for legalisation, lets not forget the medicinal benefits of weed, people with chronic pain and other conditions benefit from it as oppossed to pharma produce drugs and there side effects

roll it up, light it up, inhale and exhale

One of the biggest problems with weed is that the high wears off long before all of the other effects, so people think that they're sober when they're still impaired. It's why weed is linked to so many accidents around the home, not to mention DUI and industrial accidents.

People get high and come morning they don't feel the effects any more, but their balance and reaction times are still way down. It's especially bad with long term users who feel sober long before they actually are.

originally posted by: Athetos
As someone who has run the gambit of substance abuse sadly I’ve done almost literally everything in a pursuit to numb myself. I can say cannabis is lesser of all the evils. It is so far removed from the other substances we abuse that I would liken it to coffee or tea. Your more likely to die from coffee tho…..crazy I know.

You can become addicted naturally like any other substance, activity, or sensation. But that’s more human nature then the substances fault.

Legal cannabis usually drastically reduces opioid use in the area as well. People find a safer pain killer that’s easier to manage and often never find the need for anything stronger.

I don’t even use cannabis anymore my vice is black coffee now. 3+ years sober now.

a reply to: gortex

Surely a better solution would be to bring in policies to reduce the social issues that are causing people to turn to drugs, raising people's standard of living would be a favorite.