If Labour can pull in the right direction and agree on this with Khan it would be a massive policy boost in my opinion. There will of course be opposition to it but if they can show some of the economic benefits and reduction in organised crime it could the start of something decent.
Or the Tories will spend 2 years slagging it off as the devils lettuce in the DM and it will die flat before it begins.
Looking forward to some positive changes.
Watch out for the government telling them where to fuck off when the report’s published.
The thing that makes me laugh about this subject is that it’s not like cannabis being illegal is stopping people using it.
You can have an array of things dropped to your front door quicker than a pizza in most cities, all legalising will do is take money out of the hands of criminals & back into the country & ensure people are using something that is 100% what it says on the tin.
Full Legalisation is best. Creates new market. Protect safety of consumers. Taxation revenue instead of untaxed and illegal black market. Plus it’s a legitimate super medicinal herb. So should not be criminal nor socially demonised. Correct this awful historic mistake. The pros seriously outweigh the cons
I hate weed. Will never smoke it. But it has no business being criminalised and people being needlessly penalized over it.
Hopefully this will be a series of steps in the right direction. Massive waste of police time to try and control something which is better managed when there’s support structures in place, like dispensaries and drugs rehabs.
House of Lords won’t allow it, we need to get rid of the old bastards
Nevermind the royals, legalizing cannabis would bring in a fuckton of tourism and taxable businesses that will inevitably boom as cafes/growers pop up everywhere. I haven’t smoked in 5 years but would definitely have a dooby on the southbank if it’s legalized.
Edit: also, in relation to smell and health concerns, collaborate with Dutch Spirit, or a similar brand, in pushing use of tobacco-free tobacco. Dutch Spirit uses tea leaves and other non-toxic things, obviously it’s still smoke though. Either that or vapes like the Pax.
I don’t understand why Labour don’t support legalisation, it would be a vote winner, and at least give them a significant differentiator against the conservatives, whereas right now they’re basically conservative-lite.
Anyway, whatever, the political will isn’t there so this study will have little effect, yet I’m rolling a spliff as I type this, I have been smoking weed for nearly 30 years, and with never so much as a caution, so I’ve given up hoping or caring really.
We are constantly told we don’t have enough police officers yet they have to waste their time and energy dealing with cannabis related cases.
People are getting weed anyway regardless of the law, it’s time for the government to actually be realistic rather than just standing their ground to be stubborn. Alcohol is arguably much more harmful than weed yet it’s legal, I imagine because lawmakers at the time also drank.
Inflation is going up and up and this would be a source of jobs and income if managed properly. I’m tired of having a government which tries to restrict and lecture people about what’s good and bad when they themselves and other political parties don’t stick to the rules they’ve set. People need money and they need new ways to relax now more than ever, I don’t see an issue with a fair assessment of cannabis in comparison to legal drugs such as alcohol.
I would:
• Legalise recreational use
• Tax it to a level where the black market wouldn’t function
• Legalise consumption only on private property (I get it, it stinks – to be honest I’d move tobacco smoking to this point too)
• Make legal requirements around health warnings and different types
I honestly don’t see why it’s taken us this long. And people complain about crime when every day people fund drug cartels because there is no alternative.
The real question is why is it banned in the first place?
There is no good argument for criminalising it.
I’m very ignorant of economics so could totally be wrong, but surely this would be a massive finance boon that would help balance out against the negative impacts Brexit is having on our country?
Finally some wheels in motion
i don’t smoke and i never have, so i don’t smoke weed. however when i was in america, i had some edibles, and the way it helped with my stress and anxiety was crazy! i would love to have that option here. and states that have legal recreational use have found a good injection of extra tax income. it feels like a win/win so i don’t understand how the uk (a country that i believe is one of the biggest exporters of marijuana) is still so backwards.
Patel is such toxic peace of shit, If it so dangerous why is medical now legal?
Stop looking! …Yous have been looking for 25 years! The people need action!…It will be the only decent thing thats happened in 12 years!
won’t happen with this government
Soon as this happens I’m expanding my pub business into coffee shops.
War on drugs never worked and never will. Can’t believe we are still fighting this bullshit fight. We sell cigarettes and booze that kills you, but weed that makes you raid the fridge and then fall a sleep is a big no no…
Cannabis is still illegal but 12 pints in a row is perfectly fine…
I vote Lib Dem for one reason – their stance on cannabis.
If labour would show intention to legalise, they’d gain my vote.
Get it done! Who would have thought USA would get there before us.
Aye am sure they will look….then they will find to legalise cannabis they will have to wait until all the pharmaceutical licences they have sold expire or they’ll be sued to kingdom come.
They backdoor legalised it for the pharmaceutical companies privy to the licenses already for what they term medicinal cannabis.
They will never give a medical classification ti anything grown wothout license.
I know Durham police have said they aren’t prosecuting people found with cannabis. It’s a joke at this point. Get it legalised and get that tax revenue in. Billions being left on the table at this point.
When I was a teen cannabis legalization was what stoners wanted as an excuse to toke up more, now that I’m older and can smell weed from random cars, houses and people out and about I’m starting to think that people who want to get high are going to keep doing it regardless of the law.
LIB
DEM
SPLURGE
Good news! It’s so pointless having it illegal. Wastes time and money for something less harmful than alcohol.
I’m so bored of this argument, if we can smoke cigarettes then we can smoke weed, it has many downsides and is awful for some people but great for others, it doesn’t kill, it doesn’t lead to violence.
It’s racism, it’s outdated, it’s an excuse to imprison youth
No chance the government make too much money exporting medical cannabis. Number 1 in the world for exporting medical marijuana.
Not sure if she’s still got the job but the UKs drug minister who’s stance on cannabis was that it had no medical benefits was married to a man with a licence to grow and had a 40 acre crop… this is the level of corruption we’re dealing with. The UK will be the last country on earth to legalise.
Reacting to Mr Khan’s announcement Ms Patel tweeted that the mayor’s time “would be better spent focusing on knife and drug crime in London”.
Wouldn’t legalisation reduce knife and drug crime? 🤔
Considering that the uk is both a massive supplier of cannabis, whilst having the most backward laws in Europe. Combined with the fact that legalisation would both increase tax revenue, reduce petty and serious crimes related to trafficking and is also a far less harmful recreational drug than alcohol, the only reason it’s remained an illegal substance comes down to old school backward foot dragging from politicians either too lazy or too ignorant to make a new step in a direction the rest of the world is already taking
Wonderful news considering the health benefits of it…
“The mayor has no power to legalise drugs. He should be focusing on tackling knife and drug crime in London” – Priti Patel, UK Home Secretary, in response to the major of London attempting to tackle drug crime in London.
Priti Patel: “Drugs ruin lives” oh so tobacco and alcohol, quite possibly the two WORST drugs don’t? Smh
Can’t be done at a local level, and won’t be done at a national level.
Scotland has been looking into drug reform for ages, and have repeatedly been told that we do not have the power to address the problem.
The UK government has no interest in changing this.
About time!! All the money wasted prosecuting, when it could be extra revenue for the country, cause let’s face it, it’s bound to be taxed
eh, I think the US model has just proven that legalisation does not reduce blackmarket trade. Weed is still cheaper to buy from the dealer, due to tax so people just stick with their dealer.
Except they’ll never manage it because current and former cabinet members are invested in or have family working for British sugar, who have an effective monopoly on medical cannabis and ensure anyone who might become a competitor suddenly has license problems. It’s our own little state mafia.
>Reacting to Mr Khan’s announcement Ms Patel tweeted that the mayor’s time “would be better spent focusing on knife and drug crime in London”.
“The mayor has no powers to legalise drugs. They ruin communities, tear apart families and destroy lives,” she said.
Wow, she is so clueless, but that’s not a surprise. Often illegal drug trade itself is the cause of knife crime. Trade of illegal goods itself is what literally tears apart families and destroys lives, because people involved kill each other over territorial disputes.
I don’t even need to have an opinion on whether the use of cannabis is good or bad. We should have learned from history that prohibition of intoxicating substances does not work. It just gives criminals a market to make money from and allows for organised crime to put down roots, like the mafia during alcohol prohibition in the US.
Now anyone who can do a google search on how bad cannabis is for the individual and for society as a whole compared to alcohol will find that reputable sources say alcohol is a lot worse. Does it really make sense to ban something that has less negative effects both for the individual and for society? I don’t think so.
Don’t forget when the government scientific drugs expert (David Nutt) made the mistake of stating medically proven facts and not pure propaganda he was sacked from his role of the head of the group.
He stated the facts, with evidence, at a general talk on the subject, that horse riding causes more injuries than taking ecstasy and all the rich knobs with their horse riding families went ballistic over actual facts and the right wing press joined in resulting in him being sacked from the government for stating genuine facts and not propaganda
I may have a hard stance on this but all drugs should be legalised. Making them illegal doesnt stop a single person who wants to take drugs from taking drugs and making them illegal and regulated would not only make the drugs safer. But it would also take money away from gangs who make their money through selling drugs illegally. Decriminalisation has already been proven to decrease overdose deaths so im yet to see one good argument for recreational drugs still being illegal. Prohibition leads to drugs being stronger and cut with shit that could kill you if you dont know its in whatever you’re taking just look at the recent deaths in America from people getting drugs cut with fentanyl. Its happening over here too with ecstacy being cut with meth. People always have and always will take drugs regardless of how legal they are so better for the drugs that people will take anyway to be safer for the people taking them.
Labour’s leadership are still so staunchly against the idea of decriminalising / legalising weed, which is such a let down. At least from the Tories you’d expect it, Labour don’t have much of an excuse.
The only party with sense on this topic is the Lib Dems.
If you’re legalizing I’m voting for you. Put that in your stats and smoke it.
“I don’t personally like the smell” is such a weak argument for criminalising something.
44 comments
If Labour can pull in the right direction and agree on this with Khan it would be a massive policy boost in my opinion. There will of course be opposition to it but if they can show some of the economic benefits and reduction in organised crime it could the start of something decent.
Or the Tories will spend 2 years slagging it off as the devils lettuce in the DM and it will die flat before it begins.
Looking forward to some positive changes.
Watch out for the government telling them where to fuck off when the report’s published.
The thing that makes me laugh about this subject is that it’s not like cannabis being illegal is stopping people using it.
You can have an array of things dropped to your front door quicker than a pizza in most cities, all legalising will do is take money out of the hands of criminals & back into the country & ensure people are using something that is 100% what it says on the tin.
Full Legalisation is best. Creates new market. Protect safety of consumers. Taxation revenue instead of untaxed and illegal black market. Plus it’s a legitimate super medicinal herb. So should not be criminal nor socially demonised. Correct this awful historic mistake. The pros seriously outweigh the cons
I hate weed. Will never smoke it. But it has no business being criminalised and people being needlessly penalized over it.
Hopefully this will be a series of steps in the right direction. Massive waste of police time to try and control something which is better managed when there’s support structures in place, like dispensaries and drugs rehabs.
House of Lords won’t allow it, we need to get rid of the old bastards
Nevermind the royals, legalizing cannabis would bring in a fuckton of tourism and taxable businesses that will inevitably boom as cafes/growers pop up everywhere. I haven’t smoked in 5 years but would definitely have a dooby on the southbank if it’s legalized.
Edit: also, in relation to smell and health concerns, collaborate with Dutch Spirit, or a similar brand, in pushing use of tobacco-free tobacco. Dutch Spirit uses tea leaves and other non-toxic things, obviously it’s still smoke though. Either that or vapes like the Pax.
I don’t understand why Labour don’t support legalisation, it would be a vote winner, and at least give them a significant differentiator against the conservatives, whereas right now they’re basically conservative-lite.
Anyway, whatever, the political will isn’t there so this study will have little effect, yet I’m rolling a spliff as I type this, I have been smoking weed for nearly 30 years, and with never so much as a caution, so I’ve given up hoping or caring really.
We are constantly told we don’t have enough police officers yet they have to waste their time and energy dealing with cannabis related cases.
People are getting weed anyway regardless of the law, it’s time for the government to actually be realistic rather than just standing their ground to be stubborn. Alcohol is arguably much more harmful than weed yet it’s legal, I imagine because lawmakers at the time also drank.
Inflation is going up and up and this would be a source of jobs and income if managed properly. I’m tired of having a government which tries to restrict and lecture people about what’s good and bad when they themselves and other political parties don’t stick to the rules they’ve set. People need money and they need new ways to relax now more than ever, I don’t see an issue with a fair assessment of cannabis in comparison to legal drugs such as alcohol.
I would:
• Legalise recreational use
• Tax it to a level where the black market wouldn’t function
• Legalise consumption only on private property (I get it, it stinks – to be honest I’d move tobacco smoking to this point too)
• Make legal requirements around health warnings and different types
I honestly don’t see why it’s taken us this long. And people complain about crime when every day people fund drug cartels because there is no alternative.
The real question is why is it banned in the first place?
There is no good argument for criminalising it.
I’m very ignorant of economics so could totally be wrong, but surely this would be a massive finance boon that would help balance out against the negative impacts Brexit is having on our country?
Finally some wheels in motion
i don’t smoke and i never have, so i don’t smoke weed. however when i was in america, i had some edibles, and the way it helped with my stress and anxiety was crazy! i would love to have that option here. and states that have legal recreational use have found a good injection of extra tax income. it feels like a win/win so i don’t understand how the uk (a country that i believe is one of the biggest exporters of marijuana) is still so backwards.
Patel is such toxic peace of shit, If it so dangerous why is medical now legal?
Stop looking! …Yous have been looking for 25 years! The people need action!…It will be the only decent thing thats happened in 12 years!
won’t happen with this government
Soon as this happens I’m expanding my pub business into coffee shops.
War on drugs never worked and never will. Can’t believe we are still fighting this bullshit fight. We sell cigarettes and booze that kills you, but weed that makes you raid the fridge and then fall a sleep is a big no no…
Cannabis is still illegal but 12 pints in a row is perfectly fine…
I vote Lib Dem for one reason – their stance on cannabis.
If labour would show intention to legalise, they’d gain my vote.
Get it done! Who would have thought USA would get there before us.
Aye am sure they will look….then they will find to legalise cannabis they will have to wait until all the pharmaceutical licences they have sold expire or they’ll be sued to kingdom come.
They backdoor legalised it for the pharmaceutical companies privy to the licenses already for what they term medicinal cannabis.
They will never give a medical classification ti anything grown wothout license.
I know Durham police have said they aren’t prosecuting people found with cannabis. It’s a joke at this point. Get it legalised and get that tax revenue in. Billions being left on the table at this point.
When I was a teen cannabis legalization was what stoners wanted as an excuse to toke up more, now that I’m older and can smell weed from random cars, houses and people out and about I’m starting to think that people who want to get high are going to keep doing it regardless of the law.
LIB
DEM
SPLURGE
Good news! It’s so pointless having it illegal. Wastes time and money for something less harmful than alcohol.
I’m so bored of this argument, if we can smoke cigarettes then we can smoke weed, it has many downsides and is awful for some people but great for others, it doesn’t kill, it doesn’t lead to violence.
It’s racism, it’s outdated, it’s an excuse to imprison youth
No chance the government make too much money exporting medical cannabis. Number 1 in the world for exporting medical marijuana.
Not sure if she’s still got the job but the UKs drug minister who’s stance on cannabis was that it had no medical benefits was married to a man with a licence to grow and had a 40 acre crop… this is the level of corruption we’re dealing with. The UK will be the last country on earth to legalise.
Reacting to Mr Khan’s announcement Ms Patel tweeted that the mayor’s time “would be better spent focusing on knife and drug crime in London”.
Wouldn’t legalisation reduce knife and drug crime? 🤔
Considering that the uk is both a massive supplier of cannabis, whilst having the most backward laws in Europe. Combined with the fact that legalisation would both increase tax revenue, reduce petty and serious crimes related to trafficking and is also a far less harmful recreational drug than alcohol, the only reason it’s remained an illegal substance comes down to old school backward foot dragging from politicians either too lazy or too ignorant to make a new step in a direction the rest of the world is already taking
Wonderful news considering the health benefits of it…
“The mayor has no power to legalise drugs. He should be focusing on tackling knife and drug crime in London” – Priti Patel, UK Home Secretary, in response to the major of London attempting to tackle drug crime in London.
Priti Patel: “Drugs ruin lives” oh so tobacco and alcohol, quite possibly the two WORST drugs don’t? Smh
Can’t be done at a local level, and won’t be done at a national level.
Scotland has been looking into drug reform for ages, and have repeatedly been told that we do not have the power to address the problem.
The UK government has no interest in changing this.
About time!! All the money wasted prosecuting, when it could be extra revenue for the country, cause let’s face it, it’s bound to be taxed
eh, I think the US model has just proven that legalisation does not reduce blackmarket trade. Weed is still cheaper to buy from the dealer, due to tax so people just stick with their dealer.
Except they’ll never manage it because current and former cabinet members are invested in or have family working for British sugar, who have an effective monopoly on medical cannabis and ensure anyone who might become a competitor suddenly has license problems. It’s our own little state mafia.
>Reacting to Mr Khan’s announcement Ms Patel tweeted that the mayor’s time “would be better spent focusing on knife and drug crime in London”.
“The mayor has no powers to legalise drugs. They ruin communities, tear apart families and destroy lives,” she said.
Wow, she is so clueless, but that’s not a surprise. Often illegal drug trade itself is the cause of knife crime. Trade of illegal goods itself is what literally tears apart families and destroys lives, because people involved kill each other over territorial disputes.
I don’t even need to have an opinion on whether the use of cannabis is good or bad. We should have learned from history that prohibition of intoxicating substances does not work. It just gives criminals a market to make money from and allows for organised crime to put down roots, like the mafia during alcohol prohibition in the US.
Now anyone who can do a google search on how bad cannabis is for the individual and for society as a whole compared to alcohol will find that reputable sources say alcohol is a lot worse. Does it really make sense to ban something that has less negative effects both for the individual and for society? I don’t think so.
Don’t forget when the government scientific drugs expert (David Nutt) made the mistake of stating medically proven facts and not pure propaganda he was sacked from his role of the head of the group.
He stated the facts, with evidence, at a general talk on the subject, that horse riding causes more injuries than taking ecstasy and all the rich knobs with their horse riding families went ballistic over actual facts and the right wing press joined in resulting in him being sacked from the government for stating genuine facts and not propaganda
I may have a hard stance on this but all drugs should be legalised. Making them illegal doesnt stop a single person who wants to take drugs from taking drugs and making them illegal and regulated would not only make the drugs safer. But it would also take money away from gangs who make their money through selling drugs illegally. Decriminalisation has already been proven to decrease overdose deaths so im yet to see one good argument for recreational drugs still being illegal. Prohibition leads to drugs being stronger and cut with shit that could kill you if you dont know its in whatever you’re taking just look at the recent deaths in America from people getting drugs cut with fentanyl. Its happening over here too with ecstacy being cut with meth. People always have and always will take drugs regardless of how legal they are so better for the drugs that people will take anyway to be safer for the people taking them.
Labour’s leadership are still so staunchly against the idea of decriminalising / legalising weed, which is such a let down. At least from the Tories you’d expect it, Labour don’t have much of an excuse.
The only party with sense on this topic is the Lib Dems.
If you’re legalizing I’m voting for you. Put that in your stats and smoke it.
“I don’t personally like the smell” is such a weak argument for criminalising something.