LEGALISING MARIJUANA

Uruguay has just become the first country in the world to legalise the production, sale and consumption of marijuana. Everyone over 18 will be able to buy up to 40 grams a month, the trade being taxed and regulated just like alcohol and cigarettes are.

I have long thought that marijuana should be treated in the same way as the other two, so hopefully this will be the first of many changes to the drug industry. Despite huge investments in the "war on drugs", marijuana is freely available today virtually anywhere in the world. So the current policy has failed. If Uruguay's experiment succeeds, then it could well provide the blueprint for everyone else. Hat's off to them.

Walter Blotscher