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Drug Strategy

I said that I was not going to fall out with the hon. Gentleman, but I must say that his view on cannabis is absolutely wrong. Let me conclude by making a plea. Over the last week or so, a Liberal peer insulted Essex when he attacked a speech by my hon. Friend the Member for Rayleigh (Mr. Francois). However, I noticed that yesterday the hon. Member for Colchester (Bob Russell) was wearing a T-shirt with the logo ““Proud to come from Essex””. We in Essex have a wonderful organisation called 2 Smart 4 Drugs; I will send the Minister some details about it. As we all know, the first step towards effective prevention is early education, and that is what it specialises in. It is an award-winning drugs and alcohol community project, organised by Essex police in conjunction with Essex FM. I have attended some of its presentations. This is not money wasted; it gets real results, but—the Minister knows what I am about to say—it needs more money. The organisation is led by Victoria Wilson of Essex police and a wonderful lady called Pam Withrington, whose aunt, Jo Robinson, tragically lost her son as a result of drug misuse. I ask that the Minister, in his very difficult task, looks at this project, which has made a big difference in Essex. I hope that the House will come to a positive conclusion, because all Members are united in trying to do something about this situation—I will not call it a war—but it is a very tough nut to crack.