A senior Kent academic has backed calls for the government to re-think its drugs policy.

Dr Alex Stevens who heads the European Insitute of Social Services at the University of Kent in Canterbury believes they should be decriminalised.

His comments come after Julian Critchley, who once ran the Cabinet's anti-drugs unit, said being tough on drugs was "pointless".

Dr Stevens said criminalising users wasted police time and money.
Speaking to BBC Radio Kent, he added: "Nobody is saying that dangerous drugs should be sold legally to anyone who wants them at whatever price.


"But we should learn from other countries that have reduced the criminal penalties that they use for drug users without increasing drug problems.

"There's a system in place in Portugal whereby anyone caught in possession of less than 10 days supply of any drug, cocaine, heroin and cannabis, are not prosecuted criminally but they are referred to civil panels that can put in place civil penalties but their main aim is to dissuade people from future drug use.

"There is no evidence at all that using less of a criminal approach has increased its use."

Dr Stevens said the criminality associated with drug use was exaggerated and it was only a minority that committed crimes to feed a habit.

'Sending messages'
He added: "The proportion of people that have taken illegal drugs in the age group 16-25 is just over half.

"Drug use has become the normalised activity for young people in this country. Not all drug users are criminals in other ways."

Dr Stevens said: "This argument about sending messages has been often used in drug policies. There is no evidence at all that people listen to the messages that drug laws send out."

Juilan Critchley, who worked with ex-Labour drug tsar Keith Hellawell, told BBC Radio 4's Today programme on Wednesday that he believed the best way to reduce the harm to society from drugs would be to legalise them.
He said many people he had worked alongside felt the same but in a media-driven age it was difficult to present a case on what was a complex issue.

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