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British politicians want to have a debate about treating drugs as a health problem, not a crime.

To change drug policy would be “dangerous and irresponsible” and it would be “frankly absurd” to decriminalise drugs in the UK, says the Conservatives.

But if the UK did decriminalise drugs, what would happen?

According to the government’s own report on decriminalisation, “much of the most relevant data in this area comes from Portugal”, so let’s take a look.

The answer - very little, it seems.

Drugs were decriminalised in mid 2001 in Portugal, and in the last 13 years drug use has fallen slightly. It's certainly not been the dangerous rise that the conservatives predict for Britain.

And it's the same story for drug deaths

Since decriminalisation in Portugal, fewer people are in prison for drug-related offences, drug-deaths have stayed stable and arrests for drug-related incidents have similar reported numbers. Cases of HIV/Aids cases have fallen.

Tougher punishments don't reduce use

Looking across different countries, the report says, there is no apparent correlation between the ‘toughness’ of a country's approach and the prevalence of adult drug use.

Portugal implemented a number of changes at the same time, including harm-reduction programmes and an increase in investment in drug treatment to make drug use more of a health issue than a criminal one.

The report has a lot of different examples of the way different countries have approached how drug use is treated/prosecuted but it looks like the British public want change.

And most Britons agree with decriminalising cannabis

An Ipsos Mori poll for the Transform Drugs Policy Foundation has found two-thirds of people want a review of Britain’s drugs policies and over half of the public want cannabis legalised or decriminalised.

If the Portuguese model is anything to go by, very little would change if that did happen.

[Source: Home Office]