TORY MP SUPPORTS THE MEDICAL USE OF CANNABIS

The Conservatives distanced themselves last night from a Shadow
Cabinet member who called for a debate on decriminalising cannabis and
backed its medicinal use.

Tim Yeo, the party's agriculture spokesman, who has admitted trying
cannabis as a student, stepped out of line in an interview with his
local paper. He said his son, Jonathan, took the drug to combat the
side-effects of chemotherapy treatment for cancer.

Mr Yeo, the MP for Suffolk South, told the East Anglian Daily Times: "I
think Jonathan's experience is perhaps the most significant here. There are
quite strong grounds for thinking that for some medical conditions,
cannabis can provide relief from pain and suffering.
"I would like to see it possible for people suffering from MS to have
access to cannabis. That's not to say it should be legalised. It's to say
that it could be used by doctors for medicinal purposes under prescription."

He further broke ranks with party policy by calling for a "proper
debate" on whether the drug should be decriminalised. In a sideswipe
at right-wingers such as Ann Widdecombe, the shadow Home Secretary, he
also called for a "more liberal attitude on social issues".

A Conservative spokesman said the party was opposed to cannabis
legalisation under any circumstances, as it was a "gateway" drug that
could lead on to use of other banned substances.