Poll shows there would be 121,245 new cannabis users in South Yorkshire if drug was legalised

Figures – the result of two polls commissioned by the Civitas think tank in May this year – suggest there would be 121,245 potential new cannabis users.

Top pollster, Deltapoll asked 4,451 UK adults about their own cannabis use with a second poll quizzing 1,029 UK parents on their attitudes to cannabis.

Both polls are nationally representative samples giving a true picture of public opinion.

This new research shows that across the North of England:

- One in two parents are worried about their children using cannabis.

- 60 per cent of parents want police and crime commissioners and police chiefs to get tougher on cannabis use among under 18s.

Civitas researchers have crunched ONS population data to discover that at least 44,225 children are likely to be using cannabis in South Yorkshire

Over seven in 10 (71 per cent) parents back the use of stop and search to get cannabis off the streets, according to the research.

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Parents back tough action on cannabis including schools taking action to keep classrooms cannabis free, the poll shows, with 48 per cent of parents backing schools who call in the police if cannabis use is suspected among pupils.

Almost four in 10 (38 per cent) parents think schools should routinely test and search pupils for cannabis.

But it is thought that legalising cannabis wouldn’t stop drug dealers peddling drugs to children, with only seven per cent of parents across the North of England saying the move would stop drug dealers targeting young people.

Nationally the polling finds there would be almost six million new cannabis users if cannabis was legalised, including a million young adults picking up a joint for the first time.

More than 1.5 million parents of primary school children would take up cannabis if it were legalised, the poll showed.

Last year research from Portugal, where cannabis has been legalised, showed a thirty fold increase in reported psychosis cases and questions have been raised about whether the NHS could cope with millions of new cannabis users.

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Frank Young, editorial director at Civitas and author of the report said: “This is the moment parents fight back against politicians talking up legalisation of drugs. We don’t need 121,245 new cannabis users in South Yorkshire.

“It should make the police and crime commissioner stop and think and direct police chiefs to get really tough on cannabis use.

“This poll tells us that parents want the police and politicians to start getting tough on cannabis use and that calls to legalise cannabis are way off the mark.

“Parents are worried that politicians rushing to legalise drugs will make their job harder and put their children at risk. At a time when cops are turning their attention to wacky diversity and inclusion schemes. British parents are telling them they want the police to be out there using stop and search to take drugs off the streets.

“Other countries have tried legalisation of cannabis and seen psychotic disorders sky rocket to 30 times pre-legalisation levels. We already have a mental health crisis in Britain. Do we need millions of new cannabis users flooding hospitals?"