CANNABIS CLINIC TO TREAT 12-YEAR-OLDS

Children as young as 12 are to be offered treatment for
cannabis-related mental health problems at a leading clinic.

The Priory Hospital, in Roehampton, south-west London, has set up a
new clinic to treat young people suffering from the effects of drug
and alcohol use.

The NHS will pay to treat 12- to 18-year-olds suffering from
psychological problems after smoking cannabis.

Figures disclosed by The Daily Telegraph yesterday show that 500
people are being treated by the NHS every week for mental health
problems related to cannabis.

Since the Government downgraded it from a Class B to a Class C drug,
the number of adults being treated in hospitals and clinics in England
for its effects has risen to more than 16,500 a year.

Over the same period, the number of children needing medical attention
after smoking the drug has risen to more than 9,200.