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UK: Skunk cannabis use on the rise
The Metro
Tuesday 05 Feb 2008 Skunk cannabis has all but replaced less potent versions of the drug on the streets, Government advisers heard. It is now said to account for as much as four-fifths of all cannabis sold in England and Wales, a five-fold increase in just six years. The rise and rise of the super-strength variety – plus growing evidence of links with mental illness – led to new calls for the drug to be upgraded to Class B just four years after it was reclassified to Class C. Critics said the move had sent the wrong message to users that the drug was legal and a U-turn would reinforce health warnings. The debate on cannabis was reeopened yesterday as the Government's Advisory Council on the Misuse of Drugs began hearing two days of evidence from police and other experts. Sales of resin made up one-fifth of the market while herbal cannabis accounted for just five per cent of seizures, compared with 15 per cent six years ago, the council was told. 'We think the downgrading sent out the wrong message. An awful lot of people think cannabis is now legal,'BackPageBackPagesaid Cindy Barnett, from the Magistrates Association. Louis Appleby, the national director for mental health at the Department of Health, said 'a change in classification could reinforce a strong public health message'. The review will be completed by April when the Home Secretary will decide whether to reclassify cannabis. But Lib Dem London mayoral candidate Brian Paddick, who as a police commander pioneered a softly-softly appproach to the drug, said: 'Reclassification now would confuse people further. We need one clear, consistent message which is: cannabis is a dangerous drug.' http://www.metro.co.uk/news/article.html?in_article_id=95162&in_page_id=34
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