The London Drugs Commission
The independent London Drugs Commission (LDC), established by Mayor of London Sadiq Khan in 2022, has now published its findings following the most comprehensive international study to date of the use, impact and policing of cannabis. It sets the scene for a robust national debate on how best to reduce the harms associated with cannabis and the laws which govern it.
The report follows detailed analysis of written and oral evidence from over 200 experts and academics from London, the UK and around the world. Lord Falconer and his Deputies were assisted by leading experts from criminal justice, public health, community relations and drug policy and supported by academics from University College London (UCL).
The report reaches five overarching conclusions:
- Cannabis can be addictive and more explicit provision of services focused on problematic use and addiction to the drug is needed, alongside greater join-up across health services.
- Possible gains from legalisation, including tax revenues and reductions in criminalisation, can be realised early. However, the extent of harms, particularly with respect to public health, as well as personal and societal costs, take longer to emerge and are not yet well understood.
- Inclusion of cannabis as a Class B drug in the Misuse of Drugs Act is disproportionate to the harms it can pose relative to other drugs controlled by the Act. The sentencing options currently available, especially for personal possession, cannot be justified when balanced against the longer-term impacts of experience of the justice system, including stop and search, or of serving a criminal sentence can have on a person.
- Cannabis policing continues to focus on particular ethnic communities, creating damaging, long-lasting consequences for individuals, wider society, and police-community relations.
- The content and timing of education about cannabis and its use, for both young people and healthcare professionals, is inadequate. It fails to acknowledge drivers of use and, in school settings, is often led by providers who lack sufficient credibility and insight.
“This is the most extensive consideration of what is the correct public policy response to cannabis in recent times. It is clear that a fundamental reset is required. Legalisation is not the answer. The criminal justice system response needs to focus only on the dealers and not the users. Those who suffer from the adverse effects of cannabis - which may be a small percentage of users but it is a high number of people - need reliable, consistent medical and other support. And there needs to be much more education on the risks of cannabis use. Our Report provides detailed recommendations on how the law needs to change to reflect a new focus for the criminal justice system, and how the response of the public and other sectors can better support those damaged by cannabis use."
Lord Charlie Falconer KC, Chair of the London Drugs Commission
Who sat on the London Drugs Commission?
Called to the Bar (Inner Temple) in 1974, Charlie became KC in 1991. As a barrister, he was involved in many significant commercial, industrial and financial issues of the day - until his appointment as Solicitor General in May 1997. He spent the following 13 years in government, taking on several Ministerial roles before becoming Lord Chancellor in 2003. In 2007 he then became the first ever Secretary of State for Justice, bringing together courts, prisons and justice policy for the first time. Now a partner in Gibson, Dunn & Crutcher's London office, his practice focuses on complex commercial litigation, international arbitration and investigations.
Janet retired as a Detective Sergeant from the Metropolitan Police Service in 2021 after serving 30 years. While she spent most of her service as a career detective, following the MacPherson inquiry she was also one of the first officers to become a Family Liaison Officer, playing a key role in building trust and confidence particularly within London’s African Caribbean community. In 2013 Janet became the first female Chair of the Metropolitan Black Police Association and in 2015, was elected President of the National Black Police Association. Awarded an MBE for her services to policing and the community in 2021, Janet is also a non-executive trustee with the St Giles Trust.
Virginia is Professor of History and Health Policy at the London School of Hygiene and Tropical Medicine. A former Director of the Centre for History in Public Health, her areas of specialist interest include illicit drugs; smoking; alcohol; HIV/AIDS; the history of public health, and the relationship between evidence and policy. Recent publications include Demons: Our changing attitudes to alcohol, tobacco and drugs (OUP, 2013) and Public Health. A Very Short Introduction (OUP, 2016). She is currently co-authoring a comparative policy study of responses to e-cigarettes, which will be published in 2023.
Expert Reference Group
Lord Falconer and his Deputies were assisted by an Expert Reference Group which comprised leading experts from criminal justice, public health, community relations, drug policy and academia, appointed to advise and guide the inquiry.
A Consultant in Addictions Psychiatry, Arun was a Clinical Director of NHS addiction services before joining the Westminster Drug Project as Medical Director in 2015, where he is now also joint CEO. In parallel, he holds the Chief Medical Officer role at Awakn, a biotech firm specialising in treatment of mental health and substance misuse disorders. Arun has extensive experience of setting up and running community and prison-based substance misuse services and continues to be involved in the Royal College of Psychiatry Addictions Faculty, alongside undertaking specialist inspector duties for the Care Quality Commission (CQC).
Recently awarded the Royal College of Psychiatrist researcher of the year prize, Dr Di Forti is a Clinical Reader in Psychosis Research at the Institute of Psychiatry, and Honorary Consultant Adult Psychiatrist for Lambeth’s Early Intervention Community team. She leads the UK’s first Cannabis Clinic for patients with psychotic disorders and has directed globally renowned research into the role of cannabis use in psychosis. Having been granted an MRC Senior Research Fellowship to expand her research, she aims to investigate the interaction between cannabis use and genes which predispose an individual to developing schizophrenia.
Having started at Release - a centre of expertise on drugs and drugs law - as a legal advisor supporting the legal rights of people who use drugs, Niamh is now its Executive Director. She has co-authored a number of Release’s policy papers including A Quiet Revolution: Drug Decriminalisation Across the Globe and The Colour of Injustice: 'Race', drugs and law enforcement in England and Wales. Regularly asked to comment in the media on drug policy, she is also an Associate Member of the Drug and Alcohol Research Centre at Middlesex University and a committee member for DrugScience, and has been a technical advisor to the Global Commission on Drug Policy.
David was MP for South West Hertfordshire from 2005-19. He became a Government Minister in 2010, serving first in the Treasury as Exchequer Secretary (2010-2014), Financial Secretary (2014-16) and then Chief Secretary to the Treasury (2016-17). He was promoted to Secretary of State for Work and Pensions in 2017 before moving to become Secretary of State for Justice and Lord Chancellor in 2018. He left Government and then Parliament in 2019. He writes regularly for the New Statesman and Conservative Home and is a trustee of the Prison Reform Trust.
A recently retired Chief Police Officer, Jason is passionate about addressing the harms caused by illicit drugs. In over thirty years of service across five forces, he has undertaken a range of roles, most latterly as Deputy Chief Constable in Lincolnshire Police where alongside leading the Lincolnshire Local Resilience Forum, he was also the National Police Chief Council lead for drugs. From this strategic position he played a significant part in the recent independent review of drugs led by Dame Carol Black, the government’s response to which is set out in the national plan From harm to hope: a 10-year drugs plan to cut crime and save lives.
Director of Public Health for the Royal Borough of Kingston upon Thames since 2016, and lead for the Association of Directors of Public Health (ADPH) for London on substance use, Iona also leads on Community Safety in the Borough. She previously spent 25 years in the NHS, mainly in public health and clinical roles in London. Working closely with youth and adult services, including in the commissioning of prevention, early intervention and treatment services, Iona maintains a keen interest in the impact of adverse childhood experiences and inequalities on addiction.
After a 10-year prison sentence for a drug and gang related offence, Junior joined the St Giles Trust where he is credited with developing the award-winning SOS Gangs project, London’s largest gangs exit programme. Despite leaving education at 14, he has a degree in Youth Work, an MA in Criminology, Youth Crime & Justice and, while undertaking his Doctorate which explores connections between gangs and families, was awarded an Honorary Doctorate in Education. Focusing on violence desistance, Junior designs projects and informs public policy alongside advising the Metropolitan Police Service and others on best practice. In 2020 he received an OBE in recognition of his work tackling youth violence.
Professor Winstock is a British and Australian trained Consultant Psychiatrist, addiction medicine specialist and researcher. Founder of the The Global Drugs Survey, the world's largest study of legal and illegal drug use, he works across community and prison treatment services in the UK. Passionate about education for those in health care, hospitality and most importantly those who use drugs, Adam has published over 150 papers and book chapters and developed a suite of free harm reduction tools, available at: www.drinksmeter.com; www.drugsmeter.com; www.saferuselimits.co, www.onetoomany.co
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