Time for Change Survey and Report

27 DECRIMINALISATION AND LEGALISATION Decriminalisation of drugs for personal use Just over half (50.5%) of respondents supported the decriminalisation of ALL drugs, while only 9.7% supported the continued prohibition of all currently illicit drugs (see Figure 10). This demonstrates significant support for decriminalising some substances, with 37.5% supporting the decriminalisation of cannabis but not all illicit drugs, followed by psilocybin mushrooms (18.9%), MDMA (15.8%) and LSD (14.7%). Figure 10. Support for decriminalisation Recommendation #9 We recommend that the Australian Government adopt a full decriminalisation model for all illicit drugs to reduce the health and social harms associated with prohibition and its effects. Some respondents shared additional views on a shift from criminalisation to decriminalisation, including the importance of approaching drugs through a health and social lens and supporting people in custodial settings: “Drug use MUST be treated as a social/health issues and not a criminal one. Money and resources put into prohibition and enforcement is much better spent on literally anything else, but in particular harm reduction practices and education in our institutio ns.”