HUGE RISE IN CANNABIS USE

Was the Government right to relax the laws on cannabis possession?

Cannabis seizures have leaped in London since the Government relaxed the
law on possession, the Metropolitan Police said today.

Tensions have risen between police trying to enforce the new law, and
youths who believe they are now entitled to smoke cannabis openly on the
street. Large quantities of the drug enter Britain from abroad and more
cannabis factories are being discovered in London.

The warnings are in a report endorsed by Met Commissioner Sir John Stevens.
They come the day before measures to tackle the nation's growing drugs
problem are announced in the Queen's Speech.

Mr Blunkett's move to reclassify cannabis from category B to C means most
adults caught in possession no longer face arrest. Youths found with the
drug are still routinely detained. The Met said 6,231 people were caught
with cannabis between April and August last year. In the same period this
year, the figure was 8,148 - an increase of 31 per cent. Most received
informal warnings or cautions.

An internal consultation with senior Met officers concluded: "The
reclassification has sent out a mixed/confusing message to police officers
and members of the public.

"Front-line officers were finding that dealing with searches resulting in
cannabis seizures were often confrontational. Youths were telling officers
they could not do anything about their possession of the drug. "Local
communities also expressed concern about a perceived relaxation in drug
enforcement."

Despite the rise in seizures, the change in the law has saved officers'
time because actual arrests are down sharply.

The Tories seized on the findings to claim the reclassification was not
working. Bob Neill, Conservative leader on the London Assembly, said: " The
reclassification would seem to have made it harder, rather than easier, to
enforce the law.

"If cannabis was reclassified back to class B everybody would know where
they stand, cannabis use would fall, and police could return to arresting
those who use illegal drugs."

The Conservatives pointed to a wide variation in recorded seizures between
boroughs, suggesting the new laws were being enforced inconsistently. Shane
Collins, organiser of Lambeth's Cannabis Festival, said: "The new law is a
drug dealer's charter. Users are confused it's not an arrestable offence in
most circumstances but you still can't buy it legally." The Home Office
said: "The report illustrates that the police in London are still enforcing
the law on cannabis strongly.

"Officers are following enforcement guidance on cannabis by very often
issuing street warnings where appropriate.

"Consequently there has been a dramatic decrease of 53 per cent in arrests
.. freeing police resources to tackle class A drug offences." In
tomorrow's Queen's Speech, the Government will outline the first ever Drugs
Bill, which will include a new tranche of powers to force addicts into
treatment. It will also allow police to give drugs tests to people arrested
over minor crimes, while council tenants whose homes are used by drug
addicts will face eviction. But at the same time, Downing Street's strategy
unit is calling for heroin on prescription, which it claims would reduce
crime by taking the drug out of the hands of criminals.