London Mayor Sadiq Khan says it's ‘high time' to decriminalise cannabis for ‘personal' use
London Mayor Sadiq Khan urged the government to decriminalise small quantities of natural cannabis, saying the current laws 'cannot be justified.' His comments came after a fresh report by the London Drugs Commission (LDC) found that the current laws on cannabis were 'disproportionate to the harms it can pose,' following a study of how the drug is policed around the world. Khan himself set up LDC in 2022.
'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,' the London mayor said on Wednesday, reported the Guardian.
According to the Daily Mail, the commission, chaired by the former Labour cabinet minister Lord Charlie Falconer, revealed how the cannabis policy particularly targets certain ethnic communities, damaging relations between the police and those communities.
Lord Falconer said that while "legalisation is not the answer," the criminal justice system should "focus only on the dealers and not the users," BBC reported. Falconer made the statement after his committee could not determine the long-term harms to public health, as the implications are 'not yet well understood.'
The commission called for 'natural' cannabis to be moved from the Misuse of Drugs Act to the Psychoactive Substances Act, which will effectively legalise possession of small amounts for personal use while continuing to prohibit importing, manufacturing or distributing the drug, including any amount of 'synthetic' cannabis. Under current laws, cannabis is classified as a Class B drug and those found in possession may face imprisonment, fines or both.
Rejecting Khan's call for decriminalisation, a UK Home Office spokesperson said, 'The government has no intention of reclassifying cannabis from a Class B substance under the Misuse of Drugs Act,' Daily Mail reported. The spokesperson added that the government wants to keep focusing on cutting drug use by offering health support services and keeping the streets safe. Shadow Home Secretary of the UK, Chris Philp, also opposed the idea by mentioning that similar moves in parts of the US and Canada have led to higher crime and public health problems. 'Cannabis is illegal for a reason. Cannabis is associated with anti-social behaviour, and heavy use can lead to serious psychosis and severe mental health problems.'
Sadiq Khan was born in London to Pakistani immigrant parents. He became a solicitor specialising in human rights and was a councillor in the London Borough of Wandsworth from 1994 to 2006. In 2016, the Pakistani-origin leader made history after becoming the first Mayor of London belonging from an ethnic minority. Last year, he received a knighthood, a title bestowed upon a man by the King for outstanding achievements or service to the country.
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