STATE INDUSTRY 'COULD NET NHS A32BN A YEAR'

A NATIONALISED cannabis industry, with profits going to the National Health
Service, was proposed yesterday by a writer who claims to have been the
first person in the world to campaign for legal reform on the issue. Steve
Abrams, who organised and composed the famous 1967 full-page advertisement
in The Times demanding decriminalisation of the drug, said his idea would
boost NHS funds by A32 billion a year "on conservative estimates". Mr
Abrams, 61, believes good-quality cannabis could be grown in sufficient
quantity to satisfy domestic demand without the need for imports that would
breach Britain's obligations under international treaties.

Users would register with their GPs and obtain supplies from chemists. Mr
Abrams, an American who has lived in Britain for 40 years, ran the Soma
Research Association which published the advertisement in The Times, signed
by 65 supporters from the arts, politics and academia, on July 24 1967. The
Beatles paid the A31,800 cost of what Mr Abrams calls the "first serious
proposal, anywhere in the world, for cannabis law reform". Eight days
earlier, 3,000 people had attended a "legalise pot" rally in Hyde Park, also
organised by Mr Abrams.

The question of who should take the place of illegal drug traffickers in the
manufacture, distribution and sale of cannabis arises as a consequence of
The Telegraph's call this week for the Government to draw up plans for trial
legalisation. There was little immediate enthusiasm yesterday from what
might be considered natural contenders on the "Cool Britannia" wing of
commercial Britain. Despite Sir Richard Branson's liberal outlook on the
issue, his Virgin Group was described as "less than likely, to say the
least" to apply to add cannabis supply to its portfolio of planes, trains
and personal finance.

Sir Richard was an advocate of government-backed research into the drug's
medical properties long before ministers decided to proceed. He has also
said he does not object "to its responsible use as a recreational relaxant".
But Will Whitehorn, his chief press officer, said yesterday that Virgin had
not considered hands-on involvement. In any case, he suggested, tobacco
companies were the obvious candidates and had even, in some cases, "designed
test brands".

This assertion was contested by tobacco giants, however. British American
Tobacco (BAT) said it doubted whether there was any truth to much-repeated
rumours that one leading manufacturer had established cannabis production
facilities ready for use. A spokesman said: "I am sure it is an apocryphal
story. But who knows what a small independent company might do?" She
insisted that BAT, the world's second largest manufacturer of tobacco
products, had no plans or intention to become involved in cannabis supply.
While cannabis remained illegal, it had "nothing to do with our business".

Gallaher was equally emphatic. A spokesman said: "It is entirely
hypothetical and we believe it to be a matter for Parliament. We have no
policy on it at all and I am not aware of any discussions that have taken
place within Gallaher about this issue." Anita Roddick, founder and
co-chairman of the Body Shop and another leading champion of decriminalising
cannabis, was not available to respond to questions from The Telegraph on
whether she saw any circumstances in which she might become involved in
commercial supply. Body Shop's press office said Mrs Roddick had always made
clear that her views on cannabis represented "her own position, not Body
Shop's".

Jonathan Fell, a tobacco industry analyst with Merrill Lynch, said tobacco
manufacturers seemed an obvious area of industry to exploit cannabis: "If it
were entirely legal and socially acceptable. But the industry has enough
public relations problems as it is without wanting to be portrayed as having
secret plans to sell everyone packets of joints."

Mr Fell believes legalised cannabis would occupy only a small segment of the
cigarette market. "There might not be anyone saying, 'we need to be in
this'," he said.