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UK: Cannabis users and growers fear crackdown against attempts to decriminalise the drug James Cusick The Independent Wednesday 22 Jul 2015 Cannabis users and growers in the United Kingdom fear the Home Office will begin a crack-down against any police force attempting to decriminalise the drug, after a north-east police commissioner said his officers would no longer prosecute those growing the substance for personal use. Although there was widespread praise by pro-cannabis activists for the shift towards ending the criminal prosecution of small-scale growers announced by Durham’s police commissioner, Ron Hogg, internet forums were sceptical about Theresa May allowing other police forces in England and Wales to follow. Facebook and online discussions claimed “the powers that be” would immediately begin “kicking ass” to ensure “no county police force makes up its own rules.” Although some Facebook exchanges discussed hopes that an “unjust law” would be eased and that “medicinal growers” would be left alone, others questioned whether the government would listen to any calls for further decriminalisation. Despite Mr Hogg saying he expected other forces to follow Durham because they too not afford to waste scarce resources on the unnecessary prosecutions, many activist websites predicted the Home Secretary would “take less than a month” before the law was re-enforced and regional variations ended. David Raynes, the political affairs director for the National Drug Prevention Alliance, which campaigns for a drug-free lifestyle, accused Mr Hogg, a former senior police officer, of “going rogue” and “playing political games on behalf of others who want to see drugs laws weakened.” Mr Raynes told The Independent : “Mr Hogg and his chief constable in Durham are not there to make the law, they are there to enforce it. Giving the green light to effective decriminalisation will only encourage a rise in the illegal growing of cannabis.” The criminal justice minister, Mike Penning, repeated that the government had no plans to ease or legalise cannabis laws, and that those found growing the drug, for whatever reason, would face jail sentences. That stance was criticised by the Liberal Democrats home affairs spokesman, Lord Brian Paddick. The former deputy assistant commissioner in the Metropolitan Police said the government’s policy on drugs was failing. He said : “The war on drugs has failed and the Tories don’t know how to deal with it. Police resources should be focused on going after dealers, not those people in possession of small quantities of drugs for personal use. “ In May’s general election, the Liberal Democrat’s manifesto proposed that drug possession should be treated as a health issue, not a criminal matter. Although Lord Paddick advocated a shift in responsibility for drugs policy from the Home Office to the Department of Health, this is unlikely to happen given the government’s firm rejection of Durham’s policy. Professor David Nutt of Imperial College, who has worked as a drug advisor for the ministries of health, defence and the Home Office, said the current laws on the use of cannabis was not working. Calling on the government to look at how drugs policy worked in the Netherlands, Professor Nutt said “The police and the courts both hate how people are currently prosecuted for cannabis possession. The criminal law defence of necessity, where people claim an overwhelming urgency to break the law because of pain management and other issues, is no longer allowed.” Professor Nutt said Mr Hogg may have been protecting officers in Durham police because they “faced making life and death decisions on prosecutions that were largely unnecessary.” Greg De Hoedt, president of the United Kingdom cannabis social clubs, said government policy was currently “contributing to the growth of criminal gangs” engaged in cultivation of the drug. “There’s never been a shred of evidence that seizing a few grams of personal-use cannabis or a few plants has ever been effective in stopping its flow,” he said. http://www.independent.co.uk/news/uk/home-news/cannabis-users-and-growers-fear-crackdown-against-attempts-to-decriminalise-the-drug-10408459.html
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