The Kaleidoscope project, based in my constituency, has been operating in the UK since 1968. They're a charity methadone drug clinic that provides help and support clinics for alcohol abuse, drug abuse and drug addiction. When speaking with the director, Martin Blakebrough, on this subject, he had this to say: 'In Wales, as in the rest of the UK, we have a policy of incarcerating people with drug issues rather than offering them sustainable treatment. A prison place is much more expensive than a residential rehabilitation space. We need a policy that supports and does not punish people wherever possible. The majority of drug users with significant addiction issues have been victims of an adverse childhood experience, with a recent study showing that 84 per cent of drug users have been affected by an ACE. And yet the lack of help has led to their problems. The war on drugs has not been a war on the substance, as much as taking it out against individuals.'

In addition, Richard Lewis, recently appointed as chief constable of Dyfed-Powys Police, has also been arguing that the UK's current approach is failing. Last year, sadly, over 4,500 people died in England and Wales due to drug-related deaths. To these statistics, chief constable Lewis says:

'The vast majority of those deaths would have been entirely preventable. In 21 years of police service I have slowly, perhaps too slowly, come to the conclusion that framing this crisis as a criminal justice problem has not simply been unhelpful, but counterproductive. This nationwide epidemic is a public health crisis.'

Like Portugal and charities such as Kaleidoscope, chief constable Lewis advocates state intervention in the lives of addicts that looks to treat them not as criminals, but as patients. One way of helping is for drug treatment services, such as heroin-assisted treatment centres, to be given investment and wider coverage. Chief constable Lewis is not a lone voice in the police force when it comes to rethinking our drug policy. And the fact that his comments have not been seen as extraordinary highlights this.

Over the years, there has been a slowly changing mindset in the police. Many forces have openly indicated their unwillingness to target recreational cannabis growers and users, as they have bigger issues to deal with. This is despite the law being clear that cannabis remains illegal as a category B substance, which runs a sentence for possession of up to five years in prison, with an unlimited fine. Cannabis is the most prevalent illegal substance in the UK, and this will be a shock to no-one. Most people will have smelled its distinctive smell across the country's streets and parks. Every time you do, you know it's been bought or grown illegally. It doesn't have to be this way.

Across the Atlantic, Canada and many US states are now leading the world in advancing a new approach to cannabis, stepping away from decriminalisation alone and embracing instead full Government-owned regulation. In 2012, American states, led by Colorado, began to take dramatic cannabis reforms, whilst in October 2018, Canada witnessed wholesale legal regulation of cannabis for adult non-medical use. In Canada, provinces and territories were responsible for determining how cannabis is distributed and sold. Through its model of strong devolution, each Canadian province can also set an additional restriction. The Canadian Government's groundbreaking cannabis Act had three goals: protect public health and safety, protect young people from the negative impact of cannabis, and keep profits away from criminal gangs.

I've already spoken to the impressive public health impacts achieved in Portugal, so I'll focus on the third aim: the economic element of holding a national conversation on drug reform in the UK and Wales. In moving to legalisation and Government regulation, Canada has brought considerable profits from criminal pockets into the public purse. In the first year of legalisation, the legal cannabis retail market in Canada grew to a value of CA$908 million—over £0.5 billion. Canada created, in under a year, a billion-dollar industry with the twin effects of aiding local economies while driving down criminal behaviour. Both federal and provincial government have seen an economic pay-off. States at the forefront of this change in the US have demonstrated that the market matures, tax revenues increase and legally regulated cannabis trade oversteps illegal activity. This, of course, does not mean the illegal cannabis market has evaporated. In California, for example, the black market is still greater than the legal one. There are lessons to be learnt here in terms of implementation. Canada's policy shift is still in its infancy, but it has an encouraging record. But it is of benefit to the UK that we have so many lessons to learn.

In the 50 years since the Misuse of Drugs Act 1971 came into being, we as a nation have failed to move forward. In some legislative areas, Britain has moved with the times, yet under all parties, Westminster has upheld a 1970s era stance over drugs. Consequently, we've all seen a negative impact from substance abuse rise; we've put resources into combating an enemy that refuses to be defeated. We've sent thousands into a criminal justice system that not only fails to rehabilitate but has struggled to cope with even greater criminality. Nevertheless, there's another route. Countries around the world are showing us there's no reason for this Senedd not to open a conversation for Wales. Public health and the economy are both within our competence.

It's a sad truth that Westminster refuses to open up the conversation on drugs in the UK. This isn't solely the fault of the current administration, but a long-standing failure of all Governments. Wales may not yet have the full legislative ability, but as a member of this union, we must use our voice. As long as we frame the debate as one of criminality alone, we'll continue with the same aggressive, unhelpful outlook. To that end, it's incumbent on us to change how we think, to consider whether real impacts of drug reform take hold, to learn from others and face up to the reality of our situation. I'm not the first MS to raise these problems, and I'd like to acknowledge the work of Peredur Owen Griffiths and his efforts to establish a cross-party group on substance misuse.

I'm also not the first representative of Newport West to push this stance, and I hope I'll not be the last. My close friend Paul Flynn MP was ahead of his time on this campaign. A courageous, relentless advocate for drug reform before it was popular, he challenged Ministers, both Labour and Conservative, to do better. I'd like to finish by quoting Paul, with a contribution he gave to the Commons in 2008. In his customary erudite way, Paul said:

'We are missing something and we are failing. We need to get to the point where we recognise that, despite all our self-satisfaction as politicians—our desire to get good headlines to get ourselves re-elected—we are failing a generation whose lives are being destroyed by drugs. That is the lesson of today.'

Diolch yn fawr.