Pubdate: Tue,  4 Apr 2000
Source: Daily Telegraph (UK)
Copyright: 2000 Telegraph Group Limited
Contact:  http://www.telegraph.co.uk/
Author: Philip Johnston and Richard Eden

MAJORITY OF POLL CALLERS FAVOUR LEGALISING CANNABIS

A CLEAR majority of callers who took part in The Daily Telegraph
telephone poll on drugs favoured the legalisation of cannabis for an
experimental period.

Of nearly 4,000 calls received at the weekend, 2,438 (61 per cent)
were for the sale and consumption of the drug and 1,559 (39 per cent)
against. The result coincides with a new push in Parliament to test
the extent of support among MPs for decriminalisation or
legalisation.

Paul Flynn, Labour MP for Newport West and a campaigner for drug law
reform, is gathering support for a 10-minute rule Bill calling for
cannabis to be legalised for an experimental period of four years.
Last week he tabled a Commons motion congratulating The Telegraph for
its "intelligent, progressive call to legalise cannabis for an
experimental period".

His Bill will call for the drug to be sold under strict conditions
from specially licensed premises. Although all three major parties are
officially opposed to legalisation - and such a move is of dubious
international legality because Britain is signatory to several United
Nations conventions on drugs - there is growing scepticism at
Westminster about the current laws.

Howard Flight, Conservative Treasury spokesman and MP for Arundel and
South Downs, became one of the first leading Tories to show some
public sympathy for the argument to legalise cannabis. Mr Flight said
that he "might" support Mr Flynn's Bill, but this would depend on the
precise wording. He said: "I think that there are extremely powerful
arguments that criminalisation creates crime and does not stop usage."

Jackie Ballard, Liberal Democrat MP for Taunton, called for the
possession of cannabis to be decriminalised, but thought that it was
too early for the sale of the drug to be legalised. She said: "I think
that we do not know enough about the link between cannabis and hard
drugs. While it makes sense to downgrade possession of cannabis, we
should not do anything which could encourage people to harm their health."

Mr Flynn said that if cannabis were legalised, it could be brought
under effective control. Mr Flynn said: "Prohibition does not work.
Cannabis needs to be taken away from the criminals and the thrill of
illegality removed. If, like alcohol, it was legal, people could
choose the strength of drug they took. They would be much more likely
to take a mild form, in the same way that they are more likely to
drink a beer than strong alcohol."

Jack Straw, the Home Secretary, acknowledged last week that there was
a "coherent argument" for legalising cannabis, although he said the
case for doing so was fatally flawed. He did allow for the possibility
that cannabis might be made available on prescription to relieve the
pain of those suffering from conditions such as multiple sclerosis.
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