<P> The editor of the British Medical Journal, Dr. Fiona Godlee, gave her personal support to Rolles' call for decriminalisation, and the arguments drew particular support from Sir Ian Gilmore, former president of the Royal College of Physicians, who said we should be treating drugs "as a health issue rather than criminalising people" and "this could drastically reduce crime and improve health". </P> <P> Danny Kushlik, head of external affairs at Transform, said the intervention of senior medical professionals was significant . He said: "Sir Ian's statement is yet another nail in prohibition's coffin . The Hippocratic oath says:' First, do no harm' . Physicians are duty bound to speak out if the outcomes show that prohibition causes more harm than it reduces ." </P> <P> Nicholas Green, chairman of the Bar Council, made comments in a report in the profession's magazine, in which he said that drug - related crime costs the UK economy about £ 13bn a year and that there was growing evidence that decriminalisation could free up police resources, reduce crime and recidivism and improve public health . </P> <P> A report sponsored by the New York County Lawyers' Association, one of the largest local bar associations in the United States, argues on the subject of US drug policy: </P>

Laws passed to discourage drug and alcohol abuse would serve which function