As an international student from the US state of California, there is one surprising contradiction that I have found from living in the UK. I can (and have) drank a substantial amount of alcohol, to the point where I am left stumbling around the streets of Edinburgh into the early hours. Drinking is not only an activity which is legal, but that for many is an important part of the experience of going to university. On the flip side, if a few of my friends and I were to decide to enjoy a gummy, brownie, or joint with cannabis in it, we would risk jail time and, in my case, deportation.
Is it right to destroy someone’s life over a plant – especially when it could be argued that alcohol poses more of a threat? My home state, along with plenty of jurisdictions around the world have made the decision to decriminalise or legalise marijuana for recreational use. It is high time that the UK do the same, or at least bring the issue more into the political limelight.
To begin, there is a ton of tax revenue that the government is missing out on. In the second quarter of this year, California made roughly 227 million pounds in taxes from over 1 billion in taxable sales according to the California Department of Tax and Fee Administration. That is over the course of 3 months in a state with a lower population than the UK, and the revenue has been growing steadily over the years. It’s not a sum that will fix all of the problems in this country, but to pass it up without a second thought seems foolish.
Then there’s the issue of enforcement. It is safe to say that policing in the UK is encountering some sizeable issues relating to misconduct and discrimination. Can we trust them to impartially enforce the cannabis laws on the books right now with this in mind? The reality is not really – instead, we have a situation where only certain, more privileged groups of people can safely use the drug, while the lower classes disproportionately and unfairly pay the price.
I feel it is right to highlight these two arguments because there is essentially ‘something for everyone.’ Legalisation allows money to be made from the cultivation and sale of cannabis while at the same time helping to right a wrong that has caused a lot of harm.
And yet, both Labour and the Conservatives are against it. At the bare minimum, there should be some sort of mainstreaming of the issue. More people should be questioning: are all the police raids, lost tax revenue, and ruined lives are truly worth it?
Ultimately, were this outdated precedent to be better challenged, I think a lot of people would realise that it is not. With legalisation, a thriving new section of the UK economy would open up, a grave injustice would come to an end, and this problematic double standard would finally become a thing of the past.
“Legalize Marijuana” by Zervas is licensed under CC BY-NC-ND 2.0.
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The case for marijuana legalisation in the UK
As an international student from the US state of California, there is one surprising contradiction that I have found from living in the UK. I can (and have) drank a substantial amount of alcohol, to the point where I am left stumbling around the streets of Edinburgh into the early hours. Drinking is not only an activity which is legal, but that for many is an important part of the experience of going to university. On the flip side, if a few of my friends and I were to decide to enjoy a gummy, brownie, or joint with cannabis in it, we would risk jail time and, in my case, deportation.
Is it right to destroy someone’s life over a plant – especially when it could be argued that alcohol poses more of a threat? My home state, along with plenty of jurisdictions around the world have made the decision to decriminalise or legalise marijuana for recreational use. It is high time that the UK do the same, or at least bring the issue more into the political limelight.
To begin, there is a ton of tax revenue that the government is missing out on. In the second quarter of this year, California made roughly 227 million pounds in taxes from over 1 billion in taxable sales according to the California Department of Tax and Fee Administration. That is over the course of 3 months in a state with a lower population than the UK, and the revenue has been growing steadily over the years. It’s not a sum that will fix all of the problems in this country, but to pass it up without a second thought seems foolish.
Then there’s the issue of enforcement. It is safe to say that policing in the UK is encountering some sizeable issues relating to misconduct and discrimination. Can we trust them to impartially enforce the cannabis laws on the books right now with this in mind? The reality is not really – instead, we have a situation where only certain, more privileged groups of people can safely use the drug, while the lower classes disproportionately and unfairly pay the price.
I feel it is right to highlight these two arguments because there is essentially ‘something for everyone.’ Legalisation allows money to be made from the cultivation and sale of cannabis while at the same time helping to right a wrong that has caused a lot of harm.
And yet, both Labour and the Conservatives are against it. At the bare minimum, there should be some sort of mainstreaming of the issue. More people should be questioning: are all the police raids, lost tax revenue, and ruined lives are truly worth it?
Ultimately, were this outdated precedent to be better challenged, I think a lot of people would realise that it is not. With legalisation, a thriving new section of the UK economy would open up, a grave injustice would come to an end, and this problematic double standard would finally become a thing of the past.
“Legalize Marijuana” by Zervas is licensed under CC BY-NC-ND 2.0.
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