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Downing Road has expressed concern over strikes to finish the prosecution of younger folks caught with hashish in some London boroughs, beneath a pilot scheme being developed by Sadiq Khan.
The mayor of London is known to be growing a plan primarily based on a profitable mannequin from Thames Valley police that may provide lessons or counselling, somewhat than arrest, to under-25s caught with small portions of hashish.
Khan’s workplace stated the plans for 3 boroughs to trial the method have been nonetheless in growth and that they didn’t have the powers to completely decriminalise any medicine. The pilot is but to obtain approval from the mayor’s workplace for policing and crime.
Each Downing Road and the Labour chief, Keir Starmer, stated they didn’t endorse any additional decriminalisation of medication. Boris Johnson’s spokesman stated unlawful medicine “destroy lives and gas violence”.
The spokesman stated: “We have now completely no intention of decriminalising harmful and dangerous substances for leisure use. Decriminalisation would go away organised criminals in management, whereas risking a rise in drug use, which drives crime and violence which blights our streets.”
Starmer stated of the plans, first reported by the Telegraph, that he wouldn’t endorse any adjustments to the legislation. “I’m not in favour of us altering the legislation or decriminalisation. I’m very clear about that,” he stated. He added he would “have a look at” the pilot Khan was proposing, “however I’m very clear that we’re not in favour of adjusting the medicine legal guidelines.”
A spokesman for the mayor of London stated: “This restricted trial, which continues to be in growth and has but to be authorized by Metropolis Corridor, would contain three of London’s 32 boroughs and would solely apply to 18 to 24-year-olds present in possession of a small quantity of hashish. It will not apply to another drug.
“The concept of the scheme, which is already utilized by different police forces throughout the nation, could be to divert younger people who find themselves discovered with a small quantity of hashish away from the legal justice system and as an alternative present assist and assist. This has been proven to cut back reoffending.
“Lowering crime is the mayor’s high precedence and he’ll proceed to discover and implement the simplest options to assist to divert younger folks away from drug use and crime for good.”
New approaches to tackling unlawful drug use has been a precedence for Khan’s second time period in workplace. He has commissioned a review by impartial specialists into the feasibility of decriminalising hashish.
Although he has no powers to vary their standing legally, he’s anticipated to present a mayoral endorsement to any proposals from the assessment, together with full decriminalisation if that’s really helpful, which might be prone to spark a wider dialog.
The fee is analyzing how nations world wide have tackled issues with drug use and habit, together with evidence from Portugal, the place possession and consumption of medication have been decriminalised since 2001.
The mayor will obtain suggestions for Metropolis Corridor, the federal government, the police, the legal justice system, and NHS and remedy companies.
The unlawful drug commerce within the UK is estimated to value society £19bn per yr, in accordance with the mayor’s workplace. About 41,900 folks throughout England and Wales have been charged with drug-related offences final yr.
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