A spokesperson for the Mayor of London said: “This limited trial, which is still in development and has yet to be approved by City Hall, would involve three of London’s 32 boroughs and would only apply to 18-24 year olds found in possession of a small amount of cannabis. It would not apply to any other drug.
“The idea of the scheme, which is already used by other police forces across the country, would be to divert young people who are found with a small amount of cannabis away from the criminal justice system and instead provide help and support. This has been shown to reduce reoffending.
“Reducing crime is the Mayor’s top priority and he will continue to explore and implement the most effective solutions to help to divert young people away from drug use and crime for good.”
Notes to editors
- The pilot referenced, the funding for which has not had final approval from the Mayor’s Office for Policing and Crime (MOPAC), does not mean that the Mayor is moving to decriminalise cannabis - something that he does not have the power to do. This targeted pilot would apply only to 18-24 year olds found in possession of a small amount of cannabis in three of London’s 32 boroughs. The results of this limited pilot would be subject to a robust evaluation prior to any further roll-out. The pilot is based on the successful Thames Valley Model which won a national award last year.
- This pilot replicates common practice to divert those who have committed low-level offending away from the criminal justice system and into support services to provide them with positive interventions instead. This can reduce reoffending and provide cost effective, positive outcomes. MOPAC is already engaging in a similar successful pilot working with female offenders. See: Evening Standard: Scheme to divert women offenders in London away from prison is cutting reoffending (December 3 2021) https://www.standard.co.uk/news/crime/reoffending-women-shoplifting-theft-prison-met-police-london-b969911.html
- The implication that this diversion pilot scheme is a MOPAC initiated piece of work is incorrect. Lewisham commissioned a consultancy report (produced by Voltface) into the negative impacts of low-level drug offences. The report recommended that Lewisham pilot pre-custody drug diversion for 18-24-year olds found in possession of a small amount of cannabis. Lewisham approached MOPAC to request support for this pilot and while MOPAC is actively involved in discussions around this scheme, it has not yet been finalised.
- Investigating ways in which young people can be diverted away from low-level drug use is not out of step with the Government’s drugs strategy, published in December last year, which includes a large focus on diverting drug users from the criminal justice system and into healthcare. See BBC: UK drug strategy overhaul to focus on recovery not prison (December 5 2021). https://www.bbc.co.uk/news/uk-59533858?at_campaign=KARANGA&at_medium=RSS
- The Mayor does not have the legislative power to decriminalise cannabis as some reporting implies. As he set out in his manifesto, he will establish a London Drug Commission of independent experts who will examine the effectiveness of our drugs laws, with a particular focus on cannabis. The Mayor will continue to fully support the MPS in targeting those causing harm to our communities. The Commission will not look at the classification of Class A drugs, which the Mayor has been consistently clear must remain illegal.