MENTAL HEALTH WARNING OVER 'SKUNK' CANNABIS

Super-strength "skunk" cannabis now accounts for 80 per cent of all
seizures of the drug, and police in Northamptonshire say they are
recovering more of the variety than ever before.

Experts have warned of the health risks of smoking skunk - named
after its potent smell - with fears that it could soon account for
one in four cases of schizophrenia in the UK within two years.

A spokeswoman for Northamptonshire Police said the force did not
specifically separate skunk from herbal cannabis following drug
seizures, but added it was concerned at the high proportion of skunk
currently on the market in Northamptonshire.

She said: "What people want to buy is skunk, because it is a stronger
quality, and we are seizing more skunk now because that is what the
market demands.

"We are concerned because it has been shown there are very harmful
health effects. We are working hard with our partners to reduce
supply in Northamptonshire."

Home Office advisors have claimed skunk, which is made from the
flowering heads of Class C cannabis plants, is now the dominant
product in the market and the growth in its use has coincided with a
rise in Vietnamese-operated organised criminal gangs.

Earlier this year, police raided a string of eight high-tech
hydroponic factories in the county in less than two weeks, resulting
in the arrests of three Vietnamese men.

The countywide consultant for the Northamptonshire Drug and Alcohol
Action Team (DAAT), Arun Dhandayudham, said skunk is now at least 50
times more potent than the cannabis which was available in the 1970s.

He added: "Every case we research now into cannabis use involves the
use of skunk, not herbal cannabis. It can induce psychotic episodes
in people who might be susceptible to them, and can stop people from
wanting to conduct normal daily activities.

"Drug users enjoy it because it brings on feelings of calmness and
euphoria, but I'm very worried about the levels of skunk now being
used in Northamptonshire."