HARMFUL DRUG OR A HERBAL MEDICINE FOR PAIN RELIEF?

With the general election due to be called at any moment now, Labour's
local canvassers, policy makers and campaign organisers will no doubt
have received their 600 page policy guide.

This guide gives all the party line answers to questions that they may
be asked about by the prospective voters.

It also tells the canvasser what to say when answering what Labour
consider 'awkward' or 'dangerous' questions such as whether cannabis
will be decriminalised.

The answer for canvassers is the following: "Labour remains firmly
opposed to the legalisation or decriminalisation of any currently
controlled drug. The scientific evidence is quite clear about the
harmful effects of cannabis, both long term and short term'.

But the medical journal, The Lancet, editorialised a few years ago
that, based on 30 years of scientific research, that "the smoking of
cannabis, even long term, is not harmful to health".

So who are the voters to believe? The Labour spin doctors or the
experts and scientists?

If the scientists and experts are right, that cannabis is demonstrably
less harmful than beer, tobacco and most over the counter medications,
then why are we still arresting 100,000 people a year, including sick
people who need this herb for pain relief?

These are the questions that I want answering from Labour. I won't
hold my breath.

Don Barnard
Legalise Cannabis Alliance