Drugs policy enters a brave new world

On New Year's day the US state of Colorado began an experiment in drugs policy that is attracting the attention of policy makers across the world. Some 76 years after the US government made the sale of cannabis illegal, Colorado has become the first state in the US to allow the sale of the drug for recreational purposes in licensed stores.

Until now, residents have been legally permitted to buy the drug if there is a clear medical need. But following a statewide ballot in 2012, any resident over 21 can buy up to an ounce of cannabis at any one time in dozens of premises licensed to sell the weed.

Colorado's move is a landmark in the debate on drugs legalisation in the US and beyond. For decades, cannabis has been the most widely used illegal drug in the world. Yet the blanket prohibition on its use is today being challenged more than ever.

Last summer, Uruguay became the first country in the world to legalise the sale and possession of cannabis. Then voters in two US states - Colorado and Washington - approved similar laws. These are big steps. The Netherlands is well known for tolerating personal use of marijuana. But even there, growing or selling cannabis is still technically illegal.

Many will regard any move to legalise the sale and use of cannabis as dangerous folly. Medical concerns certainly cannot be swept aside. Opponents of legalising cannabis say it is five-times stronger than the weed of the 1960s and directly impairs the brain. There is evidence that it impairs cognitive performance in adolescents.

Yet while it is right to remain fearful of cannabis use on medical grounds, the reality is that prohibition policies in the US and elsewhere are heavily flawed. There are three reasons why a shift away from total prohibition to some form of legalisation is now worth exploring.

First, the annual cost of banning the sale and use of cannabis is huge. Each year, the US spends some $50bn on anti-drug efforts. Some 750,000 people are arrested annually for marijuana-related offences in the US. Yet today about half of Americans and nearly two-thirds of those under 30 support legalising cannabis.

Secondly, prohibition provides an important revenue source for organised crime, especially drug smuggling. If drug users are permitted to turn to legal, and cheap cannabis, smugglers will be left without a market. A study by the Mexican Institute for Competitiveness suggests that Mexico's drug cartels will lose nearly $3bn of business as a result of the reforms by Colorado and Washington state.

Thirdly, prohibition prevents the US authorities from raising tax on the sale of cannabis, removing a potential boost to state coffers. Such revenues could justifiably be used to raise awareness about the dangers of drug use - both legal and illegal - and improve the rehabilitation of addicts.

We should be clear. It is impossible to predict whether the initiatives launched by Colorado and Washington will be successful. These states are in effect serving as policy laboratories that should be monitored by other legislatures before their lead is copied. Many questions need answering. If legalisation reduces the price of cannabis, will that encourage more widespread use of the drug, at a time when many countries are trying to reduce the harm caused by smoking? Will advertising distribute cannabis more widely than is deemed safe? Above all, how much cannabis will flow from legal adult purchasers towards more vulnerable teenagers?

All we can say for now is that Colorado, Washington - and indeed Uruguay - are taking a brave leap into the unknown. They are right to try. Blanket prohibition has failed and cannot be sustained. Policy makers around the world now have a chance to see whether legalising pot produces more benefits than problems.

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