This rigorous comparative study of national and international cannabis policy making provides a fresh assessment and explanation of the role of culture in crime control under contemporary conditions.

From the local to the global, the governance of illegal drug use is becoming increasingly fragmented. In some contexts, prohibitive regimes are being transformed or replaced, whilst in others there are renewed commitments to criminalised control. But what gives rise to convergence and divergence in processes of policy making, both across different countries as well as within them?

Based upon empirical qualitative research with 'elite' insiders, David Brewster explores a diverse range of cannabis policy approaches across the globe. His original analysis reveals the factors which facilitate or hinder punitive or liberalising tendencies in cannabis policy processes, concluding with future directions for policy making and comparative criminology.