POLICE WILL NOT ENFORCE NEW CANNABIS POLICY

Most people caught with cannabis will still be let off with a caution
despite Gordon Brown's tougher stance on the drug, it was reported
today.

The Prime Minister's determination to send a clear message on the
danger of cannabis appeared to be undermined by police chiefs
insisting they will continue to "confiscate and warn" in cases of
simple possession.

Chief constables are also discussing whether fixed penalty fines
should be handed out to cannabis offenders.

Mr Brown has signalled that he will reverse the downgrading to class
C, which happened four years ago under his predecessor Tony Blair. He
feels so strongly that he is understood to be ready to ignore the
recommendation of an expert panel of advisers not to return cannabis
to class B.

Nearly six out of 10 cases of cannabis possession used to be dealt
with by arrest and formal caution before it was downgraded. But police
chiefs are not expected to return to such a practice, blamed for
wasting thousands of officers' hours that could be spent on other
crime-fighting duties.

The Association of Chief Police Officers told the Guardian: "The key will be
the discretion for officers to strike the right balance. We do not want to
criminalise young people who are experimenting."

However, the association is set to issue guidance highlighting greater
powers available to officers when there are aggravating factors in
cannabis possession, such as involvement of organised crime, violence
or disorder. These cases were more likely to lead to arrest and
prosecution.

Chief constables have backed reclassifying cannabis again because of
concerns over the strength of the "skunk" version of the drug, the
increase in cannabis farms in homes in Britain and the perception that
officers were not dealing with it as a serious issue.

But Simon Byrne, association spokesman on cannabis and assistant
chief constable of Merseyside, also emphasised that police wanted to
retain flexibility and discretion over how to deal with those caught
in possession.

Drug experts warned that the drug classification system was causing
confusion. Roger Howard, chief executive of the UK Drug Policy
Commission, said: "There will be no new powers or resources for
policing if cannabis is made class B, and cannabis warnings can still
be issued instead of arrest."

Mr Brown is expected to press ahead with toughening the cannabis laws
despite claims that there is no scientific basis for a change.

This week he voiced his worries about cannabis, particularly skunk, as
well as the message that was being sent out to young people, and the
number of individuals moving on to harder drugs.