PREMIER PRESCRIBES MARIJUANA FOR PAIN

The Premier has given his strongest indication that NSW will allow the
medical use of cannabis to relieve acute pain, with patients able to
grow up to five marijuana plants without fear of prosecution.

Mr Carr yesterday said he was at odds with a United States Supreme
Court ruling on Monday that federal law did not recognise medical
benefits from cannabis. He said there was evidence that it "could well
work".

"If someone is racked with pain as they receive chemotherapy for
cancer and if cannabis offers relief, I would want that relief to be
available."

A working party recommended to the Government in November that
accredited doctors authorise cannabis use for people with chronic
pain, or with degenerative or terminal diseases such as HIV/AIDS and
cancer.

It recommended a two-year trial to gauge the efficacy of cannabis and
looked at the "compassionate use" of the drug for about 50 people a
year who did not respond to conventional drugs. Patients could grow up
to five small plants or possess 30 grams of cannabis leaf without
facing prosecution.

Mr Carr said the Government was examining 130 submissions to the
report and was looking at how to set up the trial. He stressed this
was not a move towards decriminalising marijuana.

The Opposition Leader, Mrs Chikarovski, said the ill-effects of
cannabis use were "much understated" and legal drugs were available to
relieve the pain of terminally ill patients.

The National Party leader, Mr Souris, said Mr Carr was "off on his
next drug liberalisation adventure".

Cannabis contains active ingredients called cannabinoids that can
alleviate pain, help with nausea, reduce tremors and prevent
incontinence.

A member of the working party, Australian Medical Association
representative Dr Michael Noel, said cannabis use was recommended for:
HIV/AIDS and cancer patients suffering wastage and weight loss; cancer
pain not relieved by conventional drugs; neurological diseases such as
multiple sclerosis; and cancer patients with nausea and vomiting from
chemotherapy.

The president of the NSW Law Society, Mr Nick Meagher, said the trial
would be a compassionate and humanitarian measure for dying people.