UK: Political groups and institutions call for equity and social justice in cannabis regulation

The report “Regulating Right, Repairing Wrongs: Exploring Equity and Social Justice Initiatives within UK Cannabis Reform”, recently released by Release, proposes 14 guiding principles of social equity that should be integrated into the future legal cannabis market in the UK. The article is based on the national survey of the Release on the disproportionate policing of individuals from ethnic minorities and other disadvantaged groups and includes an assessment of emerging regulatory frameworks in North America, presenting evidence-based proposals to protect and prioritize those most vulnerable to the harms of prohibition in recreational markets cool.

“Cannabis law reform in the UK is inevitable, we must ensure that it repairs the damage of the ban,” say 15 of Britain's leading political groups and charities.

Em Press release Release warns that “from the US to Canada, from Uruguay to Germany, we are witnessing changes. Public polls show that more than half of the British public support legalizing cannabis for personal use and the reality is that cannabis reform in the UK is inevitable. The question is not when, but how cannabis will be regulated. It may take a few years, but change will come – and we must use that change to redress historic injustices.”

“Cannabis is the most used illicit drug in the UK and the world”
Several US states, in particular New York and Massachusetts, have paved the way for a social and racial justice model of cannabis reform. Release's 14 principles are designed to ensure that the same people who are imprisoned by punitive drug policies are not excluded from the legal market. This report is driven exclusively by civil society and, to date, 15 organizations have pledged their support for Drug Policy Reform, including the Green Party and the Liberal Democrats.

Laura Garius, legalization policy leader and one of the authors of the article, said the UK government's new drug strategy regurgitated 'tough on drugs' rhetoric, despite the Home Office's own research finding that estimated costs of £1,6 billion a year on drug law enforcement” is not affecting levels of substance use.

“Change is inevitable – cannabis is the most used illicit drug in the UK and the world, and it is simply too lucrative a market for politicians to ignore. However, we must ensure that it is properly regulated.”

Deleting criminal records and allowing cannabis to grow at home
The legal renaissance of cannabis is a vital opportunity to address the damage that prohibition has done to communities of color and people imprisoned for cannabis. “Social equity models of cannabis reform are already being developed around the world, while the UK lags behind. We must be prepared to follow these steps and recognize that cannabis reform is not progressive if the damage continues for some,” continues Laura Garius.

The document was published together with a application form for any civil society organization to endorse the 14 principles and support the creation of a fair and equitable UK cannabis market.

Some of the main guiding principles propose that:

• Decriminalization must accompany regulation, removing criminal or civil sanctions for the use or possession of cannabis, regardless of its legal or illegal origin;
• Tax revenue should be invested in communities that have been excessively criminalized and support harm reduction interventions and broader drug treatment initiatives;
• Non-commercial home cultivation of cannabis should be included, in the same way that individuals are currently allowed to brew their own beer;
• Automatic elimination of previous cannabis-related convictions;
• There should be schemes that actively support the integration of people who have been criminalized for cannabis-related activities into the legal sector;
• Cooperative models for cannabis distribution (such as social clubs) should be incorporated into any new regulatory system. You can read all of the guiding principles in this document.14-Social-Equity-Principles-UK-Cannabis-Reform_Release