CANNABIS THERAPY MAN ESCAPES JAIL

Cannabis Is Being Grown For Medical Trials

An elderly man who drank "cannabis tea" to relieve the pain of rheumatism
has been spared a prison sentence by an Old Bailey judge.

Albert James, 65, from South London, escaped jail despite being found with
300 grammes of cannabis by police. The case is likely to add weight to
calls for the legalisation of cannabis for medicinal purposes.

Mr James, whose medical condition means he finds it difficult and painful
to walk, told the BBC following the case: "I think they should be looking
for people with cocaine and heroin.

"I may have been breaking the law, but I was using it in my own home for my
own purposes."

Albert James escaped jail

But a BMA spokesman said that legalising the consumption of the raw drug
would mean patients also suffering its impurities.

Dr Bill O'Neill said only 60 out of the estimated 400 ingredients of
cannabis produced the desired effect.

He said: "Crude cannabis has got too many constituents - the risks of harm
outweight the benefits.

"Cannabis contains fungi, pesticide residues and very high levels of tar.

Cannabinoids already available

"We need to see purer forms of the drug available before it can be
available on prescription."

Dr Bill O'Neill talks about the safety of cannabis Two drugs using
ingredients derived from cannabis are already available on prescription for
nausea and other side effects of cancer chemotherapy, but Dr O'Neill said
that they were rarely used because other drugs proved more effective.

Trials are about to start using cannabis grown at a secret location in the
UK to test whether it is medically effective for a range of conditions.

A motion calling for cannabis to be legalised for medical purposes was
narrowly defeated at the BMA's Annual Conference in Belfast this week.