Orders of the Day — Drugs Bill

Part of the debate – in the House of Commons at 12:30 pm on 18 January 2005.

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Photo of Charles Clarke Charles Clarke Home Secretary 12:30, 18 January 2005

With all respect to Liberty, I fundamentally disagree with that view—strongly so. We have to get drug abusers who come into contact with the criminal justice system into treatment—whether rehabilitation or whatever word we use—as rapidly as possible. That is the core. No one has a right to abuse drugs, especially when we see the consequences of that abuse in so many aspects of crime. I understand my hon. Friend's concerns; he is well intentioned and has been a clear campaigner on civil rights issues of that kind, but if the choice is between the civil rights of a drug abuser or of those who are abused by the drug abuser, I choose the civil rights of those who are abused by the drug abuser. That is what lies behind the orientation of the Bill, but my hon. Friend is right to raise that point.

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David reynolds
Posted on 13 Feb 2005 4:16 pm (Report this annotation)

Again we see the distortion of the meaning of "civil rights" or "civil liberties". "Civil rights" are the rights the citizens have in their relationship with the state: freedom of speech, freedom of expression, due process, fair trial, etc. Only the state can impact "civil rights".

No one has the right to abuse drugs, well no one has the right to drink alcohol, but it is sanctioned by the state as ok. The consequences of recreational drug use are the result of its criminal status. Those mugged by drug addicts are as much victims of policies that believe heroin use will disappear as long as it is kept illegal. In fact it is the illegal status that maintains its continued use supplied by the "black market". You could stop heroin use if you supplied it to heroin addicts on the NHS for free, or even at cost, around £1 a dose. Without their addicts and without the incentive the create more addicts the market would have to move on to something else, but heroin use would be under control. Addicts would no longer be driven to commit crime. And if the figures are true, that most addicts ultimately want to kick the habit, the help can be there when they want it.

If you then admit that recreational drug use will happen because the drugs can be supplied and those who take them do so because they enjoy it, like they do alcohol, you can then take over and control the supply of over recreational drugs. Prohibition is primitive, societies should start to grow out of it.