JERSEY’S Health Minister has signalled his support for decriminalising cannabis.
As countries across the world continue to review, reduce or even abolish penalties for those caught with the drug, Deputy Tom Binet said that a softer stance on possessing cannabis would “make a lot of sense”.
And Chief Minister Lyndon Farnham said that although he was “undecided”, he was “not against decriminalisation” as long as there was enough evidence to support the move.
The question of whether the Island should take a more relaxed approach towards a drug which is now widely used for medicinal purposes was a dominant theme of the 2022 election.
According to research carried out by campaign group End Cannabis Prohibition Jersey in the weeks before polling day, more than half of the 93 candidates said that, if elected, they would back a “more progressive” approach to cannabis.
More than a dozen favoured either decriminalising or legalising the drug, while about 40 said they would support some type of reform to current laws.
Decriminalisation would mean the drug was still prohibited by law, but an individual would not be prosecuted or criminalised for carrying a certain amount. On the other hand, legalisation means that the once-banned substance would be permissible by law and there would be no penalty associated with it.
The year before the election, the then-Health Minister Richard Renouf said that the decriminalisation of cannabis “will happen at some time”.
In February this year, the States Assembly signalled its acceptance to take a lighter touch on sentencing, when it approved legislation amending the Misuse of Drugs (Jersey) Law 1978, enabling Centeniers to address repeat offences involving personal amounts of Class B and C drugs with fines.
This meant the offending could be dealt with at parish hall level instead of resulting in a court appearance and criminal conviction.
The JEP this week emailed all States Members asking whether they supported the decriminalisation or legalisation of the drug as well as a review of penalties under the Misuse of Drugs Law.
