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Face up to it, the drug war was lost years ago
• THE New Journal has carried many stories over the years about high-profile initiatives aimed at solving the problems associated with street drug sellers, the latest being the targeting of over-enthusiastic cannabis vendors around Camden Lock.
Police crackdowns sound impressive but experience shows they merely displace the activity and fail to deal with the real supply issues. Remember when the King’s Cross clampdown pushed the street trade towards Camden and Euston? MP Frank Dobson spoke out when his neighbourhood felt the side-effects. Inevitably, the current Camden Lock operation has shunted the problem northwards.
In essence, the police are expected to enforce a law that just doesn’t work, fighting a drug war that was lost decades ago. No amount of precious police resources can ever make prohibition achieve its objectives when cannabis is such a popular substance, with a UK market worth more than £8 billion a year.
If you want to take the issue off the streets, then MPs and councillors must face reality and permit licensed, regulated cannabis co-operatives and clubs. The consumer gets expert advice in a civilised, alcohol-free environment and avoids the risk of being ripped off or consuming adulterated cannabis. Legitimate jobs are created for those with the right qualifications. The public, taxpayer and police get a policy that brings sanity to the current confusion.
Ask yourself who really benefits from keeping cannabis “illegal” and what “getting tough” really means for the community.
So will skunk vendors be chased round the borough next year or will a New Journal headline ever read ‘Camden’s licensed cannabis clubs hailed success’?
ANDY CORNWELL
Grafton Road, NW5
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