Suella Braverman was yesterday quick to rubbish the growing calls for the decriminalisation of drugs for personal use.
Her unbending approach is no surprise, as the Home Secretary has built her career in the Conservative Party by positioning herself as a hardliner on law and order.
The right-wing MP might think she’s in touch with public thinking, but the reality is she’s little more than a 80s Tory tribute act.
Ordering police to arrest people found with small amounts of drugs for personal use has done nothing to reduce demand or help those battling addiction.
Conservative thinking has barely evolved since the Misuse of Drugs Act was passed by Ted Heath’s government in 1971. The Tory party had no answers to drug addiction then and it has no answers now.
Our court system and prison service has been overwhelmed for five decades by the constant demand to jail drug users, even if they pose no risk to society.
Treating addiction as a health issue instead of a criminal matter is an approach that has worked in countries around the world.
The Scottish Government was not taking a risk when it backed decriminalisation last week. For starters, drug laws are reserved to Westminster.
But the stance is also a standard policy that has proven to be successful elsewhere. At least Holyrood is proposing solutions.
Braverman is meanwhile rehashing tired old Tory arguments that were discredited decades ago. Drugs policy should be based on evidence and expert advice, not dangerous ideology.
Mortgage misery
It is shocking that Scots are facing the highest mortgage rates in 15 years. The UK Government has blundered into a situation where households are paying even more than they were under former PM Liz Truss.
Prime Minister Rishi Sunak has pledged to halve inflation by the end of the year, but it’s now clear that the plan isn’t working. He needs a plan B now, to bring it under control.
The Bank of England constantly hiking interest rates is causing real pain to countless families across the country. Hard-working families have it hard enough at the moment.
The cost of energy and food have already skyrocketed and many people have faced real-terms cuts to wages.
This has left thousands struggling to make ends meet and the rising mortgage rates will cause even more misery.
It is time for the Tories to get their house in order.
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