Two thirds of British adults think the government is doing too little to tackle addiction issues , according to a survey of more than 1,700 people by YouGov . The same proportion also believe that current policy does a bad job of minimising the harm of drugs to those who use them or to society as a whole . ‘ The public are highly critical of the current government ’ s approach ,’ says YouGov . The figures are even higher among Labour voters , with 76 per cent believing that the government isn ’ t doing enough to tackle addiction issues and 70 per cent that the government is failing to reduce drug-related harm . Among those surveyed overall , 7 per cent reported having had an addiction problem themselves , with 10 and 11 per cent respectively reporting that they ’ d had a friend or family member with a problem . While less than a fifth believed that criminalisation of people who used drugs was the right approach , there was little support for decriminalisation of
|
most drugs . Although 45 per cent supported the decriminalisation of cannabis and 28 per cent magic mushrooms , just 17 per cent supported decriminalising MDMA and 15 per cent cocaine . The figures for heroin and crack cocaine were 11 and 10 per cent respectively . More than half of respondents , however , backed the introduction of consumption rooms , with just a quarter stating that they were actively opposed .
This reflects the findings of a separate poll of 1,500 people carried out by Redfield and Wilton Strategies on behalf of the APPG for Drug Policy Reform , which found that 49 per cent supported overdose prevention centres . The poll also revealed that more than 60 per cent supported drug checking facilities at festivals and 67 per cent supported naloxone provision , while the most popular outcome for people found in possession of small quantities of drugs was
|
education or treatment rather than prosecution .
The Redfield and Wilson results ‘ fly in the face of conventional political wisdom – seemingly held by both Labour and Conservative leaderships – that assumes that the public want a simplistic “ tough on drugs ” approach that condemns all those who consume drugs for whatever reason ,’ said Forward Trust CEO Mike Trace . ‘ It ’ s important
|
‘ It ’ s important for politicians to understand that the public recognises the complexity of the issues at stake , and has moved on from a blanket war on drugs sensibility .’
MIKE TRACE
for politicians to understand that the public recognises the complexity of the issues at stake , and has moved on from a blanket war on drugs sensibility .’
YouGov survey results at yougov . co . uk / topics / health / articlesreports / 2022 / 08 / 11 / what-dobritons-think-current-approachdrugs-and-a ; APPG survey results at www . appgdrugpolicyreform . org / news / drugattitudespolling2022
|
forwardtrust . org . uk |