'SOFTLY, SOFTLY' DRUGS EXPERIMENT ENDS

The controversial experiment in the south London borough of Lambeth which
saw a "softly, softly" approach to the possession of cannabis ends at
midnight Wednesday.

Police say from Thursday 1 August people openly smoking the drug in public
face arrest.

Scotland Yard says the experiment has been successful with officers' time
being freed to concentrate on the fight against hard drugs.

But critics say it has led to more users and dealers being drawn into
Lambeth from other boroughs.

'Aggravating circumstances'

For the past year, Lambeth police have been employing a policy of seizing
cannabis and issuing formal warnings to people found in possession of small
amounts of it for personal use.

That will continue but police are warning that cannabis is still illegal
and people will be arrested if there are "aggravating circumstances" - in
line with national policy.

It has been argued that there has been public confusion over drugs policy
following Home Secretary David Blunkett's announcement that cannabis will
be reclassified from Class B to Class C.

More than 1,000 people have been warned for possession since the scheme
began last July.

Of those, 52.7% were from outside the borough, a similar proportion to
those caught in possession before the pilot, suggesting people were not
flooding into the area to buy drugs, said police.

The change coincides with a survey which suggests more than half of British
adult voters do not support the relaxation of penalties for cannabis
possession.

A Guardian/ICM poll found only 38% approved of the policy.

But there was a clear age divide, with 54% of those aged 18 to 35 and 55%
of 25 to 30-year-olds saying they approved of the change.

The majority (54%) of people aged 35 to 64 disapproved, with 76% of the
over 65s also opposed.