Letter: Drug driving

Sir: I was disappointed by the thrust of the article "Small Town, Big Problem" in The Independent Magazine (17 October). I was shocked to read the Draconian suggestion about the link between smoking marijuana and taking heroin.

While this article challenges stereotypes about heroin addicts it has done nothing for the stereotypical perception of the causal link between drugs nor has it differentiated between their very different properties and their distinctive physical and psychological effects on people.

The prejudices held by many people about drugs are non-specific and therefore there must be clear and accurate information about the nature of individual drugs across the spectrum, to include caffeine, cigarettes, alcohol, prescription drugs and the illegal drugs which form a very significant part of society today.

STEPHANIE HILL

London SW17