The illicit market is worth at least £1bn a year. We could empower the poor communities who suffer in the war on drugs
Picture two 19-year-old men living in the same country, but in different worlds. One is in his second year at Oxford University, smoking cannabis in the garden of a house he shares with friends. The other is smoking in a side-street, away from the sixth-floor flat in Tottenham’s Broadwater Farm Estate, north London, he shares with his mum.
The student’s night will end with a film and bag of Doritos, his dreams of becoming a Tory leadership candidate in 20 years intact. The second young man faces the very real possibility of a formal caution that could affect future employment and travel. In the worst case, he could get up to five years in prison for possession of a class B drug.
Many countries have opted for decriminalisation. This reduces pressure on police but sustains an illicit market
Related: Diageo keeps an eye on cannabis as gin and tequila sales soar
Related: Enslaved on a British cannabis farm: ‘The plants were more valuable than my life’
