http://globalarchive.ft.com/globalarchive/article.html?id=020114004335&query=sclerosis
Jan 14, 2002
The cannabis issue had been hotly
debated for years before Home Secretary David Blunkett finally decided
to relax the stringent laws governing the drug last October.
Supporters claim it is no more harmful
than alcohol or smoking, and can give vital pain relief to people suffering
from conditions such as multiple sclerosis and epilepsy.
Opponents, including the Government,
say the evidence shows that cannabis is linked to crime and can lead to
the taking of hard drugs such as Ecstasy and cocaine.
Mr Blunkett's proposals, which are
set to come into effect this spring, mean possession of cannabis should
no longer be an arrestable offence - but it will not officially be decriminalised.
It would be reclassified as a Class
C drug, putting it in the same category as anti-depressants or steroids
- a remarkable turnaround for Labour, which came to power in 1997 pledging
'zero tolerance' on drugs.
In practice, cannabis users would
be unlikely to face any consequences if they were caught with small amounts
of the drug.
The Minister said it would allow
police to concentrate their resources on targeting heroin and cocaine dealers.
But the Advisory Council on the Misuse
of Drugs, which Mr Blunkett will consult over the plans, first recommended
reclassifying cannabis as far back as 1979.
The first hint that a relaxation
of the law was on the cards came last July when the Metropolitan Police
started a pilot scheme in Brixton where people found carrying cannabis
were cautioned on the spot.
Police chiefs said the initiative
was introduced because it was felt too much time was spent on dealing with
cannabis possession, despite the fact it was treated as a minor offence.
But the strongest case for full legalisation appears to lie with those
who want cannabis legalised for medicinal purposes.
Earlier last year, a House of Lords
select committee report recommended that research into cannabis use should
be speeded up.
The report said: 'In the absence
of a viable alternative medicine, and though we would not encourage smoking
of cannabis, we consider it undesirable to prosecute genuine therapeutic
users of cannabis who possess or grow cannabis for their own use.'
The Government responded by saying
it had no intention of legalising cannabis for recreational purposes but
would consider relaxing the laws for its medicinal use.
It has been claimed that cannabis
can prevent nausea caused by cancer chemotherapy, alleviate muscle spasms
from multiple sclerosis, relieve chronic pain, and help in the treatment
of anorexia, epilepsy, glaucoma, and mood disorders.
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