AN MP has said jailing drug users to stop them using is “completely wrong”.
Norman Baker, MP for Lewes, met with former government drug advisor David Nutt in Lewes on Tuesday evening to discuss future drug policy.
Professor David Nutt is a professor of psychiatry and neuropsychopharmocology at Imperial College, London.
Professor Nutt was dismissed from the Home Office in 2009 after publishing a pamphlet stating alcohol and tobacco are more harmful than cannabis, ecstasy and LSD.
He had previously advised the government on drug misuse and medical safety.
As well as describing the imprisonment of drug users in order to stop them taking drugs as being wrong, Mr Baker criticised the existing policy on medicinal cannabis as “inhumane”.
He also said the upcoming Liberal Democrat manifesto would contain proposed reforms to drugs policy.
He said: “The manifesto will contain common sense, and we will do what is right to minimise the harm from drug use, which is not following the present policy which has failed for the last 43 years.”
Professor Nutt also called for tighter regulations on alcohol.
He said: “Alcohol is a leading cause of death in men aged between 16 and 50, and we have created a monster when it comes to alcoholic death with policy.”
He also criticised the way children and young people were taught about drugs, adding: “It is appalling how little we teach and how badly we teach it.
“We must always tell the truth about drugs. People should understand what the risks are and how to minimise those risks.”
He also praised the American model, where the minimum age for drinking is 21.
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