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Cannabis Campaigners' Guide News Database result:
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UK: Magistrates urge cannabis reversal
Manchester Evening News
Thursday 23 Nov 2006 MAGISTRATES voted overwhelmingly today to lobby the Government to reverse the controversial reclassification of cannabis. The decision was taken following a motion at the Magistrates' Association annual conference which claimed that moving the drug from Class B to Class C had led to its greater use and given out the wrong messages to young people. The motion, to return to the original classification of Class B for young people under 18, was proposed by members of the association's youth courts committee, including Roger Davy JP of the Bradford and West Yorkshire bench. Addressing around 400 delegates gathered at the Royal Court Hotel in Coventry, Mr Davy said he supported reclassification of the drug for all age groups but that the proposal was being made on behalf of the youth courts committee. Mr Davy said: "It saddens and frustrates me that children, and that's what they are, as young as 12, 13 and 14 are coming before me and my colleagues for offences of theft and robbery which they admit is to raise money to feed their cannabis habit. "I recognise that cannabis use does not automatically plunge children into a life of crime, but many children we see in court and many we don't, believe that cannabis use is now legal and nothing will happen if they are found in possession." 'Wrong message' He continued: "I and many of my youth court colleagues know that the downgrading of cannabis to a Class C category has sent out the wrong message to vulnerable young people. "The message has been sent out that having cannabis is not a serious offence, so more people have started to use it - who knows how many - but I am convinced that for many of the vulnerable youngsters I see in court it is a gateway to harder substances such as a cocaine and heroin." Mr Davy said he understood the Government might not want to lose face by performing a U-turn on the issue but urged delegates to take a stand and show their concern. He cited the case of a 15-year-old boy who he said had come before Bradford Crown Court accused of murdering one of his brothers in a frenzied knife attack after drinking up to seven cans of lager and smoking several cannabis joints. Mr Davy said it was not enough for the Advisory Council on the Misuse of Drugs to advise the Government all that was required was to launch an education campaign and strengthen medical services for users. He said Government figures showed cannabis crime had "soared" since classification was downgraded by the former home secretary David Blunkett in January 2004 and that research revealed regular use of the drug doubled the risk of people developing schizophrenia and other mental health problems. The motion was seconded by Ted Weston JP, who sits on the Buckinghamshire bench. Skunk He said that the cannabis in circulation today was different to that used in the 1960s. Mr Weston said over the last 10 to 15 years a hybrid version of the drug - skunk - had made its way onto the streets, which was up to 30 times stronger than the original substance. He called on the Government to make the changes in the interests of the nation's youngsters. The conference did hear arguments against the motion, which stated: "This annual general meeting considers that the impact of reclassifying cannabis from Class B to Class C has given out the wrong messages to young people and led to greater use of the drug to the detriment of young people. "It urges the Government to return to the original classification of Class B for young people under 18." One delegate said reclassification would result in more youngsters being sent into custody and that high reconviction rates meant this would achieve nothing. Another said reclassifying the drug for people aged under 18 would create more confusion and suggested the whole system be reappraised rather than tinkered with at the edges. A third delegate challenged the statistics put forward by Mr Davy and said British Crime Survey figures showed the number of cannabis users had in fact fallen over the last three years. Mr Blunkett moved cannabis to Class C - making possession a non-arrestable offence in most cases - to give police more time to concentrate on tackling hard drugs like heroin and crack. In January this year, former home secretary Charles Clarke said he would not toughen cannabis penalties despite fresh fears about its side effects. Mistake The Police Federation, which represents 138,000 frontline officers, has said the reclassification was a mistake, but the policy has been consistently backed by chief constables' group the Association of Chief Police Officers. Today also sees the publication of an annual report on drug use in Britain by the European Monitoring Centre for Drugs and Drug Addiction (EMCDDA). Last year's report warned cocaine was becoming the stimulant drug of choice of Britain's youth. More people could be dying from cocaine abuse than previously thought, it added. In June this year the decision to downgrade cannabis was criticised by the head of the United Nations anti-drugs department. Executive director of the UN Office on Drugs and Crime Antonio Maria Costa said countries got the "drug problem they deserved" if they maintained inadequate policies. In an unusual statement, he suggested cannabis was as harmful as cocaine and heroin - a stance which differs wildly from the British attitude of treating cannabis far less seriously than Class A substances.
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