Europe's antidrug bastion reconsiders

In years past, people caught smoking marijuana in the south London neighborhood of Brixton could expect to be arrested. But now, police are giving them a warning, confiscating the drug, and sending them on their way.

Britain, which has long had the strictest policies in West Europe on narcotics use, is showing signs of a possible relaxation inofficial attitudes toward marijuana.

While Britons remain divided on whether cannabis should be legalized, the six-month experiment with lenient enforcement in Brixton has some wondering whether Britain may eventually follow other Western European countries in relaxing attitudes toward so-called 'soft' drugs. The new policy experiment reflects a trend in British society toward acceptance of marijuana consumption - and an acknowledgement that the punitive approach taken over the past few decades may have been misguided.

Politicians are no longer shy about the topic. Home Secretary David Blunkett gave the clearest signal yet that the government might be prepared to soften its stance on drugs when he described the Brixton policy as "interesting," and last month called for an "adult, intelligent debate on the subject." At the same time, however, Mr. Blunkett stressed that the government must send a clear antidrugs message, especially to young people. And he said that there would be no swift decision on decriminalizing or legalizing marijuana.

Blunkett's comments followed calls by conservative Peter Lilley, former deputy Tory leader and a loyal Thatcherite minister, for marijuana to be sold (and taxed) in licensed outlets.

Lower down the political ranks, an overwhelming majority of the Labour MPs that currently dominate Parliament are prepared to vote to decriminalize cannabis, according to a BBC survey. David Winnick, a Labour member of the cross-party Commons Home Affairs Select Committee, which will be studying the topic, says he believes the drug will be decriminalized by the next general election.

The change in tenor does not extend to harder drugs, such as heroin and crack cocaine, widely seen as fueling violence, theft, and social marginalization.

British Customs officers have been told to switch efforts away from marijuana interdiction to seizing hard drugs, which flow in increasing quantities into the UK.

Commander Brian Paddick, in charge of policing in Lambeth, the borough where Brixton is located, says freeing resources to fight harder drugs like crack cocaine is part of the rationale for his officers' new tolerant line on marijuana. He stresses that the move does not legalize marijuana possession in the borough. The lenient enforcement applies only to small amounts of the drug for personal use. "The officer will seize the cannabis, which then must be signed for by the suspect. It will then be sealed and disposed of."

Some efforts to legalize marijuana are in the works, however. Jon Owen Jones, a Labour MP for Cardiff, says he will make the first British attempt to have marijuana fully legalized for recreational use when Parliament returns from its summer recess in October. However, this appears to be moving faster than the official consensus, and is likely to fail.

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