LORDS MUST STOP PLAN TO RECLASSIFY CANNABIS

Today the House of Lords debates the proposal from the Home Office to
reclassify cannabis from class C to class B. In recommending this
change to parliament, the government has rejected the explicit advice
of its appointed experts, the Advisory Council on the Misuse of Drugs,
for the first time in nearly 30 years. In its last report, produced at
the request of the home secretary, the ACMD clearly recommended - for
the third time in the last six years - that cannabis remains a class C
drug, and did so after examining all the available and latest evidence
on short- and long-term health risks, as well as social harms, public
attitudes and policing priorities.

After setting out its conclusions on the health risks of cannabis and
concerns regarding greater potency, the report made clear
recommendations for improved drugs education and greater efforts to
tackle drug dealing. However, it concluded that the evidence was
against greater criminalisation of possession. The impact of
parliament agreeing to the government's policy could be very damaging.
Cannabis use has fallen in recent years, especially following its
downgrading to class C in 2004, and it is obviously unwise to risk
reversing that trend. The classification system must be credible -
reclassification would send out an ambiguous message about the dangers
of current class B drugs.

Even more importantly, the move would be a sad departure from the
welcome trend - established after the Phillips report into the BSE
disaster - of public policy following expert scientific advice unless
there is new evidence. Baroness Meacher has tabled an amendment
calling for a postponement of any reclassification pending a further
ACMD review in two years. We urge peers to maintain the trend to
evidence-based policy-making by supporting the amendment.

Dr Evan Harris MP Lib Dem science spokesman, David King Former
government chief scientific adviser, Professor Michael Rawlins Chair,
ACMD 1998-2008, (Lord) Robert May Former government chief scientific
adviser, Phil Willis MP Chair, Science select committee, Professor
Gabriel Horne Chair, Academy of Medical Science working group on
addiction, Professor Colin Blakemore Member, UK Drug Policy
Commission; former director, Medical Research Council, Tracey Brown
Director, Sense about Science, Dr Leslie King Member, ACMD, Ruth
Runciman Former member, ACMD.