DRUG SEIZURES RISE SHARPLY IN LIBERAL BRIXTON

A LIBERAL approach to cannabis use pioneered by the controversial police
commander Brian Paddick has coincided with a 35 per cent rise in the number
of confiscations of the drug in Brixton, south London.

Police also recorded an 11 per cent increase in drug trafficking offences,
adding to the concern of critics, including some officers, that the
experiment is attracting dealers to the Lambeth borough.

Under the scheme, those found with cannabis are cautioned and the drug
confiscated. The intention is to concentrate resources on trafficking and
the misuse of hard drugs such as heroin and crack cocaine.

A similar approach will be adopted across the country once the Government
reclassifies cannabis from a Class B to Class C substance this year, making
possession a non-arrestable offence. The drug will remain illegal.

David Blunkett, the Home Secretary, said he was waiting for several
reports, including the results of the Lambeth experiment, before ordering
the reclassification. The findings are mixed and Sir John Stevens, the
Metropolitan Police commissioner, said the scheme would not be extended
across London until further work was done.

Supporters of the scheme said it released police officers to detect more
serious offences. By not arresting people for possession of cannabis, the
police had saved 1,350 hours in six months - the equivalent of about two
extra officers. But the big rise in confiscations suggests either that
there are more drugs on the streets or people are more open about smoking
cannabis, believing it to be legal.

Mike Fuller, the deputy assistant commissioner, said: "The public are very
unclear about what is happening and think drugs are being legalised and
that is not the case. Officers are still seizing the cannabis.

"Communication is going to be a key issue in any new scheme which arises
from the pilot."

An opinion poll in Lambeth suggests that most people want the scheme to
continue. A Mori survey said it had the support of more than 80 per cent of
residents. Only eight per cent disapproved.

A larger percentage of white residents (41 per cent) than black (28) or
Asian (25) supported the scheme. Cdr Paddick, 43, has been transferred
after allegations about his private life.