Green Party Leader, Jack Polanskisaid he has never taken drugs or “even drunk” in his life, but wants all drugs legalized and their use regulated.
Polanski was asked on BBC Sunday with Laura Kuensberg if he had taken drugs at university. “I’ve never actually taken drugs in my life, or even drunk alcohol, but I’m still not going to sit here as the fun cop,” he said. “I very clearly believe that people can do what they want to do. It’s just not for me.”
He told Kuenssberg that politicians who admit to drug use and advocate incarcerating drug users are taking a “hypocritical approach” when “public health policy” is needed to prevent deaths.
“It’s about legalization and regulation. The answer is to make sure that if someone has a problematic relationship with drugs, they are seen by a medical professional who can help them,” Polanski said.
Keir Starmer, who has previously said he “worked hard and played hard” at university, has accused him of using drugs at university. Green Party Being “hard on drugs, soft on Putin” during Prime Minister’s Questions last Wednesday.
Polanski, a London assemblyman, said it was “hugely disgraceful” to hear Starmer’s “badly delivered cheap jokes” about drug use from the dispatch box and that he was also “very mean” to make jokes about Putin and Russia, especially when he was not in the House of Commons to defend his party.
Illegal drug use is “very racialized,” he said, with innocent black youths far more likely to seek drugs than their white counterparts. “We have ministers Both from Labor and Conservative governments They’re on the record saying they’ve taken drugs, yet they’re putting people who do take drugs in prison, and more often than not, it’s disproportionately young black and brown people.
He initially dodged the question of whether legalizing Class A drugs, including heroin and cocaine, would send a message to young people that dangerous drug use is okay: “First, we can talk about alcohol, which can sometimes be one of the most dangerous drugs, and of course it also needs a public health policy.”
When pressed to answer the question, he said: “I think the danger is happening right now, this is where we’re pushing it. [dangerous drug use] Into street corners and into the black market … the war on drugs is not working. In fact, it is making drugs more dangerous.
“What we need is an adult conversation, taking a public health approach that looks at evidence-based, prevention, intervention and then, making sure people can get the support they need.”
Asked if he was teetotal on principle, he said: “Not at all. I grew up in a school where a lot of my friends were drinking and actually taking drugs. And often it felt like someone had to be sober.”
In an earlier interview, he told Kuensberg that a surprising fact about himself was that he used to breakdance. “I always like to dance without drinking or taking drugs,” he added. “If someone wants to do it and they’re doing it safely, I’m really happy for people to have a good time, but we know a lot of people don’t take it safely, so let’s make sure they get the support they need.”
