Study Finds Tough Cannabis Policies Do Not Deter Young People

Mattha Busby, writing for The Guardian:

There is no evidence that tough policies deter young people from using cannabis, a study has found.

Analysing data about cannabis use among more than 100,000 teenagers in 38 countries, including the UK, US, Russia, France, Germany and Canada, the University of Kent study found no association between more liberal policies on cannabis use and higher rates of teenage cannabis use.

Go ahead and add this one to the growing pile of existing evidence demonstrating that harsh drug laws and scare tactics don’t actually keep kids away from drugs. In fact, they often do the complete opposite.