CANNABIS: USERS WON'T FACE FINES DESPITE UPGRADE TO CLASS B

Cannabis users will not face fines from today, despite it being upgraded
to a Class B drug.

Police will be unable to hand out the UKP80 fines intended as part of a
new "three strikes" regime.

Home Secretary Jacqui Smith decided to move the drug from Class C to Class
B last year, because of fears over the impact of stronger strains of
"skunk" on the mental health of young people.

Under the new regime, police should issue a warning to anyone caught with
cannabis for a first offence, and give second time offenders an UKP80 fine
and penalty notice.

Anyone given a third "strike" will be arrested and could face an unlimited
fine and a prison sentence of up to five years.

The order in Parliament making cannabis use an offence punishable with a
Penalty Notice for Disorder (PND) was scheduled to pass last week.

It was bundled up with a group of other offences, including mini-cab
drivers hawking for business.

But because of opposition to some of the changes, the package of measures
was withdrawn for consultation, the Ministry of Justice said.

The cannabis order is not due to be debated in the House of Lords until
Monday and will come in to force on Wednesday morning.

It has also emerged that not all police forces will record cannabis
warnings, meaning repeat offenders could escape fines or prosecution. A
system for recording all cautions is not due to be introduced until next
year.

Home Office Minister Alan Campbell warned the average age of first-time
cannabis users is now 13.

He said: "Cannabis is a harmful drug and while fewer people are taking it
than before, it poses a real risk to the health of those who do use it.

"I am extremely concerned about the use of stronger cannabis - skunk - and
the harm it can cause to mental health.

"We are reclassifying cannabis to protect the public and future
generations. That is why, together with reclassification, it is crucial
that we are communicating with young people through the FRANK drug
awareness campaign to warn them about the consequences."

Ms Smith, who has admitted smoking cannabis at university, announced the
decision to reclassify the drug in May last year.

In Class B, cannabis users who are successfully prosecuted can face an
unlimited fine and up to five years in prison.

It was declassified by David Blunkett in 2004, putting it in the same
category as body building steroids and some tranquillisers.

A report out last week revealed record numbers of young people were being
given help for drug and alcohol abuse because of an increase in the number
of treatment places.

Marjorie Wallace, chief executive of the mental health charity SANE, said:
"SANE has been campaigning for many years over the mounting evidence of
direct links between cannabis and later schizophrenia, and we support the
proposal to reclassify it as a Class B drug.

"Cannabis, especially in its more toxic varieties such as skunk, can
double the chance of developing severe mental illness in a significant
minority of people, particularly the young whose brains are still
developing.

"While we do not yet know the cause of psychotic illness, or the ways in
which drugs such as cannabis may trigger breakdown, relapse, and worsen
outcomes, we need to maintain a clear message that it is dangerous to the
10-20% of people who may be at risk but do not know it."