GAY UK POLICEMAN REMOVED FROM JOB AFTER DRUG CLAIM

LONDON, March 18 (Reuters) - A senior British policeman who pioneered
a "softly, softly" approach on cannabis was removed from his job on
Monday after allegations by his gay ex-lover that he had used the
drug himself.

Commander Brian Paddick, who denies the allegations, was being moved
from running policing in the crime hotspot of Lambeth, south London,
to non-operational policing duties while an inquiry was being held,
Scotland Yard said in a statement.

The decision followed talks between the Metropolitan Police Authority
(MPA) and the capital's top cop Sir John Stevens early on Monday, as
a result of revelations about Paddick's private life published by a
Sunday newspaper.

The policeman's former partner, James Renolleau, claimed in The Mail
on Sunday that he and Paddick had regularly smoked marijuana at their
London flat during a five year long relationship.

"Obviously I am very disappointed to be leaving Lambeth -- albeit it
temporarily," Paddick, well-known for being Britain's highest-ranking
officer who is openly gay, told reporters on Monday.

The allegations come just months after Paddick introduced a relaxed
attitude towards cannabis in Lambeth, an inner-city area notorious
for drug-related crimes. People there are cautioned for possession
rather than arrested.

On Friday, Paddick, who once told a parliamentary inquiry into drugs
reform he was not interested in taking action against "recreational"
weekend users, said the measures had been a success, allowing police
to arrest more people dealing in hard drugs such as heroin and
crack-cocaine.

Gay rights campaigners alleged Paddick was being picked on because of
his sexuality.

"This is just so typical of what can still happen, and it will
certainly be seen by many gay and lesbian police officers today as no
encouragement or inducement for them to come out and be open about
their sexuality," Stephen Warwick, from the Lesbian and Gay Police
Association, told BBC radio.

The inquiry into the allegations will be headed by officers from
another British police force.

"People who stick their necks out in any large organisation often get
attacked from within," Tony Harris, chair of the MPA, told the BBC.
"We're very keen to make sure that is not something allowed to happen
but where serious allegations are made they have to be investigated."

It is the second time in a week that Paddick, lampooned by Britain's
tabloid press and dubbed "Commander Crackpot" by one paper, has been
hauled in by his bosses for a dressing down. Last Monday he was
summoned to explain comments he made to a radical Web site that he
found anarchy "attractive."

Using the name "Brian: The Commander," Paddick told www.urban75.com
that "the concept of anarchy has always appealed to me." Police
chiefs then gave Paddick a ticking-off, but decided he should remain
in his post.