• Question: What would happen if all drugs weren't illigal??

    Asked by Katie delaney to Roisin, Michel, Mark, Karen, Gavin on 8 Nov 2016.
    • Photo: Michel Destrade

      Michel Destrade answered on 8 Nov 2016:

      I think it’s just a matter of good regulation and oversight by doctors and society. Presumably the most powerful ones should be tightly regulated so that people don’t harm themselves too much (or die!). It used to be that cocaine and morphine were legal. Now cocaine is illegal (but that just transferred the control to organised crime, see “Narcos”) and morphine is used in hospitals to combat extreme pain. Weed is legal in the Netherlands and in some states in the US, and they’re doing OK. Perceptions of drugs and knowledge of their effects evolve all the time.

    • Photo: Mark Kennedy

      Mark Kennedy answered on 10 Nov 2016:

      Good question. I imagine it wouldn’t affect everyone’s lives (for example, nicotine is legal and addictive, but not everyone smokes, and people know the health problems with it).

      I imagine the same would be true if all drugs were legal, except there would be a lot more people who were addicted. Either way, I think regulation is the best way to go, and rehabilitation rather than prosecution is the best way to tackle Irelands drug problem.

    • Photo: Gavin Coleman

      Gavin Coleman answered on 10 Nov 2016:

      It’s hard to say precisely what would happen, as every country has a certain way of thinking, and may treat the problem differently. So just because what I’m about to say has worked in other countries, doesn’t mean it’ll work in Ireland. However, countries such as Portugal have done the next best thing and “decriminalised” drugs. While this doesn’t mean that selling the drug is legal, it means that people with problems leading them to use illegal drugs won’t be sent to jail. In the years since, they’ve seen a reduction in people using drugs as much, as they are more likely to seek help with their addictions (Portugal also invested heavily in rehabilitation), and criminals aren’t able to make as much money as there is less risk involved. It’s hard to say if it is the answer, but certainly the results show it as an alternative.

    • Photo: Karen

      Karen answered on 12 Nov 2016:

      Hi Katie, it’s hard to know exactly what would happen. Some people think it would be more regulated i.e. The amount of drugs to be taken and the price that was paid for them could be standardised. It would also remove the criminal element associated with drugs which should reduce gangland style killings etc. On the other hand people may think ‘oh if its legal it must be safe’ and take drugs for this very reason. A good example of this was drugs from ‘head shops’, there was definitely a (mis)conception that these drugs were not as dangerous as illegal ones but this was just not the case. So there are pros and cons for legalising drugs but personally I don’t think it would be a good thing to make All drugs legal.

    • Photo: Roisin Jones

      Roisin Jones answered on 13 Nov 2016:

      Hey Katie, I think the other guys have covered this pretty well: there’s basically no way of knowing what would happen if drugs weren’t illegal, but chances are there would be some good results, and some bad ones. I do think that in general we need to move towards a system that doesn’t punish addicts, but instead punishes the people making/selling the drugs, which would hopefully make it easier for people who have drug problems to get treatment if they want it.

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