Work underway to develop Isle of Man's drug policy

The review is to inform the island's developing drugs policy

Work is underway to develop the Isle of Man's policy on drugs following the publication of an independent report on their harms, the home affairs minister has said.

The suggestions from the Liverpool John Moores University public health institute, which began its research last summer, were debated by Tynwald members.

While some politicians called for an overhaul of current laws, others wanted to develop existing legislation.

Jane Poole-Wilson said any changes would require "a holistic approach".

The report heard from focus groups, charities and drug service users, and suggested a reduction in the use of criminal sanctions and deferred prosecution.

While it gave no firm recommendations, Ms Poole-Wilson said it had provided "a range of options with the supporting evidence and analysis to help us think about what we should be doing in terms of a policy approach".

'Support-based response'

Speaking in the debate, Joney Faragher MHK called for a transition "to a public health and support-based response rather than a criminal justice-based response".

Ms Faragher said the report demonstrated that the criminal justice system "had little impact in reducing population levels of drug use or reducing drug related harms".

While Ms Poole-Wilson acknowledged those findings, she said the report also referenced other jurisdictions which had addressed similar issues successfully within similar legal frameworks.

She said she did not want people to feel "confined overly" by the current law when considering "new policy approaches".

Ms Poole-Wilson also discussed a public survey, which informed the report, that highlighted three key concerns from participants - the exploitation of young people, drug related violence, and serious and organised criminals.

She said there would need to be a "victim focused approach", which recognised "harms around exploitation and the impact of a criminal record", particularly for young people.

It was now important to consider what they "wanted to achieve with our drugs policy" and think about the reduction of harms, "recognising the different dimensions of harm", she continued.

The next steps would be "developed and brought through the Health Learning and Social Policy Board", made up of both officers and ministers, she added.