We must discourage cannabis, but first we have to legalise it
On the one hand, a large proportion of us - and I would include myself in this - would like to see the soft drug legalised.
On the other hand, whether we legalise it or not, there is certainly a cast-iron case for a campaign to be introduced to discourage people from ever using the drug, since it is clearly capable of causing users great harm.
Now how that’s for a paradox? Have I lost my mind?
But hold your wisht until I explain myself.
First, the legalisation bit.
One of the reasons it is so popular recreationally, among younger people in particular, is the kudos behind it. It remains an offence to cultivate, export, produce, supply, and possess cannabis, and those using it get to feel a bit like the kids who used to smoke behind the bike sheds at school.
Legalising it would remove that frisson of devilment.
It would hopefully also act as a drag (sorry) on the fact that popular culture - from pop stars to artists, models to actors - paints cannabis as a harmless, even a creative, drug for the cool dudes.
There is societal pressure on people to accept cannabis as just another version of cigarettes, vapes, and alcohol, which are all addictive, and harmful themselves if used often enough and long enough.
Then there is the huge amount of police and court time taken up prosecuting people caught up in the cannabis chain, from the dealer down to the occasional smoker.
Moreover, legalisation of cannabis would enable the introduction of checks and balances regarding its ingredients, and help to eradicate bad and ultra-strong batches of the drug, which can be an even more serious health risk.
Factor in the huge taxes that the Government would rake in, and you can see why legalisation of cannabis is at least an option that should be considered.
A recent poll showed that a third of Irish people believe legalisation is the way forward, and this figure rose to more than half among the 15-24 age group.
The recently re-elected MEP Luke ‘Ming’ Flanagan, a campaigner against the criminalisation of cannabis use, has stated that legalising the drug would be worth €476m a year to the Irish economy in revenue through taxation and savings to the criminal justice system.
“Money currently ends up in the pockets of criminals and it would be better spent in the health service,” he said at a rally calling for the legalisation of cannabis for all over 18s.
Ireland would hardly be breaking new ground here either; as well as the well-known example of the Netherlands, other places where cannabis is legal include Canada, Germany, Spain, and South Africa.
This is all without mentioning the proven medicinal benefits of cannabis for some health conditions, an issue which currently presents all sort of headaches for the authorities.
Well, hopefully not.
It might sound ike its turning logic on its head, but legalisation might actually reduce the numbers smoking it, for the reasons outlined above, and also lead to a greater awareness of its dangers.
Legalisation would allow the authorities to do their damnedest to try to turn as many people off the drug as possible.
We could put health warnings on the packaging, run public information films and adverts telling people of all the damage regular use of cannabis may do.
We could also charge as much for it as we can, as long as we don’t risk opening the door to a black market by the same criminal gangs who have lost their power base. Look at how the price of cigarettes has soared in recent years through taxation, surely that acts as a brake on smokers, reducing their habit accordingly? The same could be done with cannabis.
Eventually, once cannabis is de-stigmatised and has lost its cool vibe, we could start to ratchet up the legal age for using it, or even copy what the UK has done with cigarettes, and start raising the legal age for use every year.
I know, I know, it sounds a bit cracked, like I have been taking a few too many drags of weed myself (I’m not a user, by the way). But it just might work... and there are too many benefits to this policy for us not to give it serious consideration.
Because the harms that cannabis, despite being illegal, are currently doing to people are many and varied.
Earlier this month, The Echo reported that hundreds of Cork people had been hospitalised with mental and behavioural disorders due to cannabis use in the last five years.
Figures from the HSE showed there were 115 Cork in-patient and day-case discharges from acute hospitals in 2023, compared to 76 the year before.
As well as the human cost, that’s putting huge pressure on our over-worked health services too.
A HSE spokesperson said people who use cannabis in their teens have an increased risk of developing a significant mental health problem such as psychosis or schizophrenia, and that those who use cannabis regularly are more likely to experience episodes of depression or anxiety.
The drug may impair thinking, memory, and learning functions.
A study in New Zealand showed that people who had started smoking marijuana heavily in their teens lost an average of 8 IQ points in the next two decades. The lost mental abilities didn’t fully return in those who quit marijuana as adults.
Studies have also shown that people who use cannabis regularly have lower life satisfaction, poorer mental and physical health, and more relationship problems.
I appreciate that this wealth of evidence would normally be good reason to crackdown on the drug, but that has proven not to work for the past 50 years or more.
Bringing the subject out into the open, and then warning people of the serious dangers of the drug, might just be the answer.
It’s got to be worth a try.
App?
