Plans submitted to decriminalise cocaine and cannabis in the UK

UK police chiefs have submitted new proposals to decriminalise cocaine and cannabis in the country.

The proposals come from the National Police Chiefs’ Council and the College of Policing, and come after an Irish parliamentary committee has recommended decriminalising and regulating drugs for personal use.

The new proposals in the UK pose the idea of any individual caught with a small amount of recreational drugs for the first time would be given the opportunity to enter a rehabilitation and education programme, and receive no criminal record or jail time if the course is completed, as The Telegraph report.

Jason Harwin, a former NPCC employee who is working with the College of Policing on the new proposal, said:” “We should not criminalise someone for possession of drugs. It should be diversion to other services to give them a chance to change their behaviours.”

Labelled “outcome 22,” first time offenders would receive “no further action” when “action to prevent reoffending or change behaviour by addressing the root cause of the offending” had been taken.

The new recommendation of decriminalisation in Ireland came in a Joint Committee on Justice report published this month, which acknowledged “the harms associated with pursuing a criminal justice led approach to drug use and misuse” and recommends that a health-led approach “is prioritised in both policy and practice.”

The report also recommended increasing investment in harm reduction services, including addiction treatments and social interventions, as well as expanding the Medical Cannabis Access Programme (MCAP) so that more people can access medical cannabis to treat chronic illnesses.

Elsewhere, there have been reports of ‘pink cocaine’, a mixture of drugs such as ketamine and MDMA with pink food colouring in it, spreading across Europe. The drug originated in Colombia’s late night club scenes.

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