LEGALISING CANNABIS 'WILL SAVE MONEY'

Plans to relax the cannabis laws could save police UKP38m a year and vastly
improve police and community relations, says an independent report.

The study by the Joseph Rowntree Foundation backs proposals by Home
Secretary David Blunkett to downgrade cannabis to a Class C drug.

The study - called Times They Are A-Changing - also revealed huge
variations across the country in the way offenders are dealt with for
possession of cannabis.

It found that some police officers "specialise" in arresting marijuana
users while others treat it informally.

It calls for a pilot scheme in Lambeth, London, which treats cannabis as
Class C - meaning possession is not an arrestable offence - to be extended
nationwide.

Mr Blunkett is expected to reclassify the drug after considering a report
from the Advisory Council on the Misuse of Drugs (ACMD).

The report also suggested cannabis possession should no longer be a
criminal offence, to save police time.

And it called for setting up a legitimate source of cannabis to prevent
users coming into contact with criminal gangs.

As well as the financial benefits for the police, the report also noted
social advantages to downgrading cannabis.

Report co-author, Professor Mike Hough, said: "The non-financial benefits
could be large since reclassification is likely to remove some of the
friction between police and communities that currently hinders co-operation
in tackling more serious crime."

And he dismissed the arguments that arresting someone for cannabis offences
could often lead to officers discovering other more serious crimes.

Only 11 custody cases out of 30,000 began with a cannabis offence and led
to a serious crime.

Roger Howard, DrugScope Chief Executive, welcomed the report and said
downgrading would end the "postcode discrimination" for users.

The research was based on time spent on the police beat and interviews with
officers and users.

SIDEBAR

Cannabis study

3% of officers make 20% of cannabis arrests

Downgrading cannabis to C will save police at least UKP38m a year - 500
full-time officers

One in seven serious offenders in 1999 had a cannabis 'record'

Six out of ten possessions result in caution