CANNABIS CONFUSION

The application of the law on cannabis is a muddle. You may believe that
the decision to downgrade cannabis from a class B to a class C drug from
the beginning of the year means it is no longer illegal to possess and use
cannabis but only illegal to trade in it. You risk arrest if you buy and
sell cannabis, or if you use it in aggravated circumstances - in the
street, in a school playground or outside the school gate. But policy, as
we understand it, is for simple possession of cannabis to lead only to a
caution.

The Government is trying to be pragmatic about cannabis use. Millions use
it in moderation for pleasure and to stigmatise law-abiding citizens with a
criminal record is silly; cannabis use is here to stay. And yet the
Government, and most parents fear, with good reason, that further
liberalisation would lead to an explosion of use. Hence the retention of
the threat of arrest.

If this is too confusing for the public and the police, then the way
forward has to be towards full decriminalisation. To work, this must go
hand in hand with a vigorous education campaign on the dangers of drug
abuse but, as we report today, this key plank of government policy is set
to collapse through a funding shortfall.

There are important benefits to further liberalisation, including putting
the currently murky business under public scrutiny, where health risks and
product quality can be properly monitored. Some of the very strong cannabis
on the streets today bears little relation to the mild mood-altering stuff
used by yesterday's students.

It is essential that relaxation of the law is accompanied by greater
education about the long-term effects of use. Decriminalising a drug is not
a declaration that it is safe, as we know when we warn children against the
dangers of tobacco and alcohol. Cannabis may be a real danger to health.
But its use should not be a crime.