| Country: | the United Kingdom |
| Cannabis Is Safer Than Alcohol | |
| Abbreviation: | CISTA |
| Chairperson: | Paul Birch[1] |
| Foundation: | February 2015 |
| Dissolved: | November 2016 |
| Ideology: | Cannabis legalisation |
| Country: | Northern Ireland |
| Citizens Independent Social Thought Alliance | |
| Chairperson: | Barry Brown |
| Foundation: | 2017 |
| Ideology: | Cannabis legalisation |
Cannabis Is Safer Than Alcohol (CISTA) was a political party in the United Kingdom, which advocated the legalisation of cannabis.
The party was launched in February 2015.[2] The party fielded candidates in the 2015 general election, campaigning for a Royal Commission to review the UK's drug laws relating to cannabis and to push the economic argument for legalisation, which it argued could generate £900 million in taxation.[3] None of the candidates won a seat.
The party was deregistered by the Electoral Commission on 3 November 2016.[4]
The party contested 32 constituencies, with its largest share of the vote coming in East Londonderry with 527 (1.5%).
| Constituency | Candidate | Votes | % | |
|---|---|---|---|---|
| Jonathan Dewey | 303 | 0.5 | ||
| Alexander Robertson | 197 | 0.4 | ||
| Edouard-Henri Desforges | 160 | 0.4 | ||
| Lesley Parker-Hamilton | 225 | 0.5 | ||
| Neil Paine | 527 | 1.5 | ||
| George Antar | 301 | 0.6 | ||
| Matt Heenan | 396 | 0.7 | ||
| James Marris | 171 | 0.4 | ||
| Russell Benson | 154 | 0.4 | ||
| Geoff Johnson | 225 | 0.6 | ||
| Chris MacKenzie | 213 | 0.5 | ||
| Sam Townley | 167 | 0.4 | ||
| Gerri Smyth | 196 | 0.4 | ||
| Paul Birch | 297 | 0.6 | ||
| Shane O'Donnell | 252 | 0.5 | ||
| Craig Hamilton | 233 | 0.5 | ||
| Jay Kirton | 309 | 0.7 | ||
| Tony Auguste | 211 | 0.6 | ||
| Matthew West | 217 | 0.6 | ||
| Glenn Donnelly | 338 | 0.9 | ||
| Andy Doyle | 202 | 0.4 | ||
| Yvonne Maclean | 336 | 0.6 | ||
| Jen Battersby | 207 | 0.5 | ||
| Ali Majid | 244 | 0.8 | ||
| Artificial Beast | 192 | 0.4 | ||
| Jamie Barnes | 244 | 0.5 | ||
| Martin Kelly | 460 | 1.0 | ||
| Steve Reed | 238 | 0.5 | ||
| Louis Jensen | 164 | 0.3 | ||
| Elliot Barr | 283 | 0.7 | ||
| Barry Brown | 528 | 1.4 | ||
| Declan Wade | 229 | 0.4 |
Lee Harris stood for CISTA in the 2016 London Mayoral election. He finished ninth out of twelve candidates, obtaining 20,537 first-round votes (0.8%).[6]
The party contested four of the 18 constituencies, with its largest share of the vote in any election that the party had contested coming in Newry and Armagh with 2.2% (1,032 first-preference votes).[7]
| Constituency | Candidate | First-preference votes | % | |
|---|---|---|---|---|
| John Lindsay | 259 | 0.7 | ||
| Emmet Crossan | 1,032 | 2.2 | ||
| Martin Kelly | 672 | 1.5 | ||
| Barry Brown | 547 | 1.4 |
Following the de-registering of Cannabis is Safer than Alcohol in November 2016, a new party bearing the same initials, Citizens Independent Social Thought Alliance, was registered with the Electoral Commission in February 2017, one week before the close of nominations for the snap elections to the Northern Ireland Assembly. The leader of this new party is Barry Brown, who was a CISTA candidate in 2016 and 2017.
The party contested three of the 18 constituencies, with its largest share of the vote coming in Newry and Armagh with 704 first-preference votes (1.3%).
| Constituency | Candidate | First-preference votes | % | |
|---|---|---|---|---|
| John Lindsay[8] | 196 | 0.4 | ||
| Emmet Crossan[9] | 704 | 1.3 | ||
| Barry Brown[10] | 373 | 0.8 |