LONDON – A former minister who once had responsibility for Britain’s narcotics policy has said that all drugs should be decriminalised, arguing that prohibition and the war on narcotics have failed.
Bob Ainsworth said yesterday he had changed his mind on the issue during his period as a Labour minister at the home office because of the futility of the policy of trying to outlaw drugs, but he had not wanted to speak out while he was still in government.
However, the Conservative-led coalition government has ruled out making any changes to the law.
“The war on drugs does not work. We need to be bold, we need some fresh thinking,” Mr Ainsworth, who was also defence secretary in the former Labour government, told BBC radio.
“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.”
However, Labour leader Ed Miliband and a Labour MP who has led anti-drug campaigns moved swiftly to distance themselves from his “irresponsible” ideas.
“Bob’s views do not reflect Ed’s views, the party’s view or indeed the view of the vast majority of the public,” a spokeswoman for Mr Miliband said.
There was also a stinging retort from Labour MP John Mann, who carried out an inquiry into hard drug use in his Bassetlaw constituency while Mr Ainsworth was drugs minister.
“He didn’t know what he was talking about when I met him with my constituents during my heroin inquiry and he doesn’t know what he’s talking about now,” he said.
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.
“Legalisation fails to address the reasons people misuse drugs in the first place,” Mr Brokenshire added, “or the misery, cost and lost opportunities that dependence causes individuals, their families and the wider community.” – (Reuters, PA)