Scots urged to join Wales in a bid for drug powers
Police commissioner says joint approach may sway head-in-the-sand Home Office
THE SCOTTISH Government is being challenged to join with Wales to demand powers to implement radical drugs strategies.
Arfon Jones, North Wales’s police and crime commissioner, has accused Scotland’s Lord Advocate, Lord Wolffe, of “bottling out” of granting permission for Drug Consumption Rooms to help battle drug deaths and the spread of needles in Glasgow city centre.
And he will give a presentation in December to the Welsh Government, urging it to consider a joint approach, amid the refusal of the Tory Government to consider a pilot for such schemes.
Jones spoke out after revealing that North Wales will copy many elements of the “Portuguese Model” in decriminalising possession and consumption of drugs as part of its Checkpoint Cymru strategy.
His force will offer drug users who are searched and arrested to join a narcotics education and rehabilitation scheme of up to a year instead of facing a criminal conviction.
Jones urged Scotland to build on the “de facto” decriminalisation that already sees police officers look away from many minor drug crimes.
He said: “Myself and the Chief Constable are doing a joint presentation to the Welsh Government in December on different aspects of harm reduction and I think we will probably push for closer cooperation between the Scottish and Welsh Governments to address the shocking increases in drug-related deaths.
“There’s a reluctance from some public authorities to face up to the deaths and the Home Office has its head in the sand. What I’d like to see is the Home Office devolving its drugs policy to both Wales and Scotland. I think we could progress very quickly to address things.” He added that a big step forward would be Drug Consumption Rooms “which the Home Office just won’t contemplate”. Jones said: “When Lord Wolffe refused to give a Letter of Comfort to prevent the opening of a DCR pilot in Glasgow, it was a real backward step.
“Scotland has a separate legal jurisdiction and, basically, he should have done what is right and signed the letter and if the Home Office isn’t happy they can have the arguments out in the Supreme Court. The fact that Lord Wolffe bottled it means that everything is still up in the air.”
The Scottish Government said they
There’s a reluctance to face up to the deaths ARFON JONES NORTH WALES POLICE COMMISSIONER
welcomed the proposal to join forces with Wales and said the same opportunity would be extended to Northern Ireland.
They added that they would be happy to consider proposals to work with colleagues in the other devolved administrations to reduce harm caused by drugs.