Dissecting the latest drugs controversy

by Cecilia Börjeson

Most of us have an opinion when it comes to drugs, and many can share drug-related observations from our nights out: the uncontrollably talkative cocaine user running off to the toilet every half an hour; the doe-eyed, amourous pill popper who wants to hug the entire world; and that someone tripping on ketamine, erratically running around wielding a broom, shouting ‘happy birthday’.

Yet again drugs are in our headlines, and this time around in an almost unprecedented manner.The cause of controversy was the statement made by government drugs advisor Professor David Nutt in October this year, when he claimed that smoking cannabis only results in a: “relatively small risk” of psychotic illness, adding that he did not want to “mislead” the public about the true effects of drugs merely because the government wants to convey a particular moral message.

He was sacked, despite none of his statements containing any revelations or radical claims, but instead referred to previously-published material.

Yet, the Government who made this choice is the same Government that gave us 24-hour booze, and had us all scratching our heads over the sudden re-classification/de-reclassification of cannabis from B to C…and then back to B again.

This epitomises the ambivalent consensus on drugs in the UK. If they can’t agree within the corridors of power, how can the public be expected to make their minds up?

Drug appeal

According to a poll carried out by The Observer in 2008, Britain is at the top of the tables for drug use in Europe. The same poll also stated that more than a quarter of adults have tried illegal drugs in their life, and almost half of the 16-34 year old group have dabbled with drugs at some point.

Additionally, in the same week as the Professor Nutt scandal, there were reports stating that cocaine use is on the rise among City workers – a drug previously known as the ‘Champagne drug’ of the '70s and '80s.

So aside from the political issues, what is the reason for our relaxed and almost complacent attitude towards drugs?

Lending his opinion to the battle of the intoxicants, Mat Southwell of the Dance Drugs Alliance, which aims to educate people on how to enjoy drugs safely and sensibly, said that: “Research shows the chance of dying each time you take ecstasy is one in a million – that’s the same as downhill skiing.”

Andrew Anthony, writing for The Observer in 2008, explained that: “Society adjusts to specific drugs in much the same way that the body does: it becomes more tolerant.”

He continued by commenting on former Metropolitan Police Commissioner Ian Blair’s plan to target London’s middle-class cocaine users: “Most Britons think that illegal drugs should remain illegal, but not that illegal. Ian Blair’s vision of dinner-party police raids never really caught on.”

Taking into consideration Professor Nutt’s unwillingness to conform to the government’s drugs policy, which is overriding scientific figures, the whole alcohol versus drugs debate is appearing to have reached a stalemate. It is now almost ‘unfashionable’ to express distaste at someone else’s recreational drug habits.

Alcohol, Britain’s favourite of these vices, is still grabbing more headlines than any illegal substance, and binge drinking is being recognised as a serious problem in society. The scene of the shattered people huddled on benches in local parks, clutching their brown paper bags, is all too familiar.

With these mixed messages, where scientific facts are subdued for the betterment of government policy, no wonder it renders us blasé about the whole issue.