Dear All
One thing about politicians is that towards the end of their careers some start talking sense.
‘Bungling’ Bob Ainsworth, a former minister once had responsibility for Britain's drugs policy.
His stance at that time was typical government stooge stuff, ‘drugs bad’ and ‘tough on crime, tough on the causes of crime’.
A robot or animated parrot, take your pick!
Now, at the end of his career, he has found a voice, today in 2010 he says all narcotics should be decriminalised.
He argues that prohibition and the war on drugs had been a failure.
So many problems could be solved by decriminalising drugs and revenue generated which could be ploughed back into projects and programmes that would benefit society.
Drug taking and selling will not be stopped by Government unless they enter the market and bankrupt, a hostile takeover.
Bob Ainsworth, a Home Office minister under Tony Blair said he wanted production and supply to be officially regulated.
So why didn’t he speak up and be vocal while a minister, I would say that the six figure salary was a gag.
Since Ainworth has blurted out his opinion, Labour leader Red Ed Miliband has moved swiftly to distance him and the Labour Party from the MP's 'irresponsible' ideas'.
Not far behind Red Ed, ‘Call me Dave’, another one paralysed by election fear said that the answer to decriminalisation is “No!”.
Cameron and Miliband operate on outdated Victorian values because they seek to cling onto power.
Just say no is about just keep voting for me.
Former Cabinet minister Bob Ainsworth says the war on drugs had been 'nothing but a disaster, just look at Afghanistan were President Karzai pardoned and freed 5 drug smugglers who had been caught and sentenced.
Tory MP Andrew Griffiths, who chairs the all-party parliamentary group on the misuse of drugs and alcohol, said:
“No wonder drugs policy was such a mess under Labour when a Home Office minister wanted to legalise heroin. Drugs cause crime and can devastate communities. Ed Balls and Ed Miliband must distance themselves from these dangerously out-of-touch comments.”
At present drugs are illegal and all the money goes to criminals, so both Labour and the Tories are actually supporting money laundering and crime.
Crime Prevention minister James Brokenshire said:
“Drugs are harmful and ruin lives - legalisation is not the answer. Decriminalisation is a simplistic solution that fails to recognise the complexity of the problem and ignores the serious harm drug taking poses to the individual”.
This is from a piece of Westminster lobby cannon fodder who fails to recognise that at best about a few percent of drugs shipments are actually seized.
Enforcement hasn’t worked ever!
Ainsworth said:
“The war on drugs does not work. We need to be bold, we need some fresh thinking”.
And that has to start by bankrupting the drugs market.
He added:
“This has been going on for 50 years now and it isn't getting better. The drugs trade is as big and as powerful as it ever was across the world.”
One thing about politicians is that towards the end of their careers some start talking sense.
‘Bungling’ Bob Ainsworth, a former minister once had responsibility for Britain's drugs policy.
His stance at that time was typical government stooge stuff, ‘drugs bad’ and ‘tough on crime, tough on the causes of crime’.
A robot or animated parrot, take your pick!
Now, at the end of his career, he has found a voice, today in 2010 he says all narcotics should be decriminalised.
He argues that prohibition and the war on drugs had been a failure.
So many problems could be solved by decriminalising drugs and revenue generated which could be ploughed back into projects and programmes that would benefit society.
Drug taking and selling will not be stopped by Government unless they enter the market and bankrupt, a hostile takeover.
Bob Ainsworth, a Home Office minister under Tony Blair said he wanted production and supply to be officially regulated.
So why didn’t he speak up and be vocal while a minister, I would say that the six figure salary was a gag.
Since Ainworth has blurted out his opinion, Labour leader Red Ed Miliband has moved swiftly to distance him and the Labour Party from the MP's 'irresponsible' ideas'.
Not far behind Red Ed, ‘Call me Dave’, another one paralysed by election fear said that the answer to decriminalisation is “No!”.
Cameron and Miliband operate on outdated Victorian values because they seek to cling onto power.
Just say no is about just keep voting for me.
Former Cabinet minister Bob Ainsworth says the war on drugs had been 'nothing but a disaster, just look at Afghanistan were President Karzai pardoned and freed 5 drug smugglers who had been caught and sentenced.
Tory MP Andrew Griffiths, who chairs the all-party parliamentary group on the misuse of drugs and alcohol, said:
“No wonder drugs policy was such a mess under Labour when a Home Office minister wanted to legalise heroin. Drugs cause crime and can devastate communities. Ed Balls and Ed Miliband must distance themselves from these dangerously out-of-touch comments.”
At present drugs are illegal and all the money goes to criminals, so both Labour and the Tories are actually supporting money laundering and crime.
Crime Prevention minister James Brokenshire said:
“Drugs are harmful and ruin lives - legalisation is not the answer. Decriminalisation is a simplistic solution that fails to recognise the complexity of the problem and ignores the serious harm drug taking poses to the individual”.
This is from a piece of Westminster lobby cannon fodder who fails to recognise that at best about a few percent of drugs shipments are actually seized.
Enforcement hasn’t worked ever!
Ainsworth said:
“The war on drugs does not work. We need to be bold, we need some fresh thinking”.
And that has to start by bankrupting the drugs market.
He added:
“This has been going on for 50 years now and it isn't getting better. The drugs trade is as big and as powerful as it ever was across the world.”
Alex Stevens, professor in criminal justice at the University of Kent and an expert in drugs, crime and public health policy backs Ainsworth.
He said:
“My research shows that the "war on drugs" is an ongoing and costly failure which has imposed significant harm on the most vulnerable communities. My recent article in the British Journal of Criminology on the decriminalisation of drugs in Portugal shows that harmful drug use does not necessarily increase, and that significant savings in the costs of law enforcement and improvements in public health can follow decriminalisation. I put the case for progressive decriminalisation to the Society of Labour Lawyers earlier this week and it is right that Bob Ainsworth has made this call today”.
He added:
“My 15 years of research in the field has shown how criminalisation of drug users has not reduced drug-related harms, either in the UK or internationally. Indeed, it shows that illicit drug use is now widespread.”
Alex Stevens is right in his findings and views, but until enough people enter politics that can see beyond petty party political election posturing nothing will change.
In America Proposition 19 in California came on the statue books because people recognised that the ‘war on drugs’ needed fresh thinking because the cost was crippling the taxpayer in the courts, such thinking is needed here.
The ‘War on Drugs’ is a phoney war that keeps corrupt governments in power and funds criminals who diversify into other areas of crime and legitimate business.
This must be stopped by bankrupting the drugs market by way of legalisation.
Yours sincerely
George Laird
The Campaign for Human Rights at Glasgow University
“My research shows that the "war on drugs" is an ongoing and costly failure which has imposed significant harm on the most vulnerable communities. My recent article in the British Journal of Criminology on the decriminalisation of drugs in Portugal shows that harmful drug use does not necessarily increase, and that significant savings in the costs of law enforcement and improvements in public health can follow decriminalisation. I put the case for progressive decriminalisation to the Society of Labour Lawyers earlier this week and it is right that Bob Ainsworth has made this call today”.
He added:
“My 15 years of research in the field has shown how criminalisation of drug users has not reduced drug-related harms, either in the UK or internationally. Indeed, it shows that illicit drug use is now widespread.”
Alex Stevens is right in his findings and views, but until enough people enter politics that can see beyond petty party political election posturing nothing will change.
In America Proposition 19 in California came on the statue books because people recognised that the ‘war on drugs’ needed fresh thinking because the cost was crippling the taxpayer in the courts, such thinking is needed here.
The ‘War on Drugs’ is a phoney war that keeps corrupt governments in power and funds criminals who diversify into other areas of crime and legitimate business.
This must be stopped by bankrupting the drugs market by way of legalisation.
Yours sincerely
George Laird
The Campaign for Human Rights at Glasgow University
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