Sentences for dope dealers to be slashed

Convicted dope dealers, who are increasingly peddling drugs to children, will have their maximum sentences slashed by two thirds if the Government downgrades cannabis to a Class C drug. The highest sentence that a Judge could impose on a dealer who, for example, sells drugs outside school gates, will be cut from fourteen years to just five years in prison.

This is just one of the points published today in a new booklet: Going soft on cannabis. The booklet is published by The Christian Institute and it highlights the little-known consequences of reclassifying cannabis, which also includes ending the electronic surveillance of cannabis smugglers.

Director of The Christian Institute, Colin Hart, said today: “Currently the public is bombarded with ‘reasons’ for legalising cannabis. Politicians on the left and the right, along with drugs ‘experts’ and liberal church leaders, are supporting reclassification. But people are not being told the full implications. In practice, over time, there will be very little difference between reclassification and de facto legalisation.”

“Drug dealers will be given free reign to peddle dope to young people and all they have to do to avoid arrest is claim their cannabis is for personal use. Even if they do get convicted they will only face a maximum of five years in prison – that is a reduction of nine years. The Metropolitan Police Commissioner has already voiced concerns about cannabis dealing to children in Lambeth. But the proposals to reclassify cannabis go much further than Lambeth’s ‘softly, softly’ approach which has caused so many problems – particularly for children.”

“The case for changing the law does not stand up to scrutiny. Our booklet is an attempt to get some facts straight. It considers 15 of the most common arguments for the decriminalisation of cannabis and demolishes each one.”

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