Put drugs policy first, says ex-spy chief

THE former head of MI5 called last night for Britain’s drugs policy to be “at the forefront of national debate”.

Baroness Eliza Manningham-Buller wants a “non-political conversation” into how the problem is tackled. She spoke out after a group of MPs and peers said the government should consider legalising some substances because the war on drugs was not working.

The all-party parliamentary group on drug policy Reform, on which she sits, said there were examples abroad showing appropriate regulation of drugs could help cut crime.

She said drug policy was “a taboo subject for discussion”.

“Given its effects and the enormous cost, I find it extraordinary that it is not at the forefront of national debate,” she said.