IS THE COUNTRY GOING TO POT?

Our grandparents passed the port, but could our children be the first
to pass the pot? STACIA BRIGGS asks if proposals to relax cannabis
laws are a step in the right direction or a dangerous move.

LEGALISE cannabis? Has the country gone to pot? Despite coming to
power in 1997 with a promise of "zero tolerance" towards drugs, Labour
has announced that Britain's stringent cannabis laws are set to be
relaxed next Spring.

David Blunkett has proposed that cannabis should no longer be an
arrestable offence and should be reclassified as a class C drug,
putting it in the same category as anti-depressants or steroids.

Denying the move was decriminalisation and stressing that cannabis
would remain illegal, Mr Blunkett said it would mean drugs laws "make
more sense on the street."

In practice, it means cannabis users will be unlikely to face any
consequence if they are caught with small amounts of the drug.

A major motivation behind the new proposals is the effect it will have
on police resources which are already pushed to their limits.

"When they are able to deal with people who are pushing drugs, it will
lighten their load and make more sense on the streets than it does at
the moment", said Mr Blunkett. Kate Walsh, press officer at the
Norfolk Police, stressed that reclassification of cannabis as a class
C drug did not mean it was decriminalised.

"It is very difficult o say what impact these changes in the law will
have on police procedures until those changes are made absolutely
clear", she said.

"We will make changes when the ramifications of the proposals are
clear. I would imagine there will be national guidelines issued that
will set out any new procedures."

If the reclassification of cannabis goes ahead, it would put the whole
country on the same footing as a pilot scheme in south London where
police are "turning a blind eye" to cannabis use.

Cannabis possession would be dealt with by either a caution - which
would go on a criminal record - or by summons, which sees the offender
called to magistrates court to face a possible fine, in the same way
that many driving offences are dealt with.

Peter Farley, director of the Norwich-based advice agency The Matthew
Project, is concerned that reclassification could give young people
the impression that cannabis use is without risk.

"There's no justification for tobacco being legal and cannabis being
illegal but my concern is that this is sending out a message
especially to young people, that cannabis is harmless," he said.

"It may be harmless to some people, but it's clearly not to others.
It can ruin people's lives.

"Will there be government health warnings issued similar to those that
are on cigarette packets? If not, the government is putting itself in
a position where it could be sued."

He added: "Legal, illegal or less illegal, we will still continue to
help the people who have a problem with cannabis.

"We have seen a significant rise in the number of people coming to us
whose lives have been totally wasted through the use of cannabis. but
then we also see people who have taken the drug and avoided these problems."

Police officers will still be expected to confiscate cannabis under
the new ruling, and supply and intent to supply will remain offences
for which people could be arrested and face heavier penalties of up to
14 years in jail.

The new maximum sentence for cannabis possession will be two years.
Derek Williams of the UK Cannabis Internet Activists believes Mr
Blunkett's proposals are "too little, too late" and should have been
introduced at least five years ago. "Cannabis is finally being
normalised and it's the first step on the right road to legalisation.
I think we will see big changes in the next six months and that
cannabis use will become more commonplace," he added.

"My concern is that supply of cannabis has not been addressed. Supply
is still in the hands of criminals - the model of the Amsterdam coffee
shops is one that could be replicated here.

"There also needs to be a harm reduction policy advising people how
they can lower their health risks by taking cannabis without using
tobacco." The current illegality of cannabis leaves Derek unwilling to
talk about whether he uses the drug, but he hopes a day will come when
Norwich boasts its own coffee shops openly supplying ready-rolled joints.

Alun Buffry, of the Legalise Cannabis Alliance, also believes the
proposals are a move in the right direction. "I think David Blunkett
has been quite brave.

"I think in real terms it will mean people will be able to smoke more
openly and less will be prosecuted," he said.

Having served two concurrent prison sentences in 1991 for conspiracy
to import and supply cannabis, Alun is well aware of the legal penalty
of taking his drug of choice. But he says the drug has not affected
his health.

"I have been using cannabis on and off for the past 30 years and have
suffered no ill effects.

""I gave up smoking tobacco a few years ago and immediately felt
healthier, but when I gave up cannabis for a while I didn't notice the
difference."