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Cannabis Campaigners' Guide News Database result:
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Legalise cannabis candidate
The Shetland Times
Thursday 14 Apr 2005 AN EIGHTH candidate has thrown his hat in the ring to fight the Orkney and Shetland seat at the general election on 5th May. Paul Cruickshank (31), a joiner from Peterhead, is standing for the Legalise Cannabis Alliance (LCA). A long-time campaigner for the legalisation of cannabis and an activist for Friends of the Earth, Mr Cruickshank is visiting Orkney this week and will be in Shetland next week. The LCA is fielding 22 candidates at the election but Orkney and Shetland is the only Scottish seat the alliance is contesting. At the last general election in 2001 the alliance attracted between 1.5 per cent and 2.5 per cent of the vote. LCA national co-ordinator Alun Buffry said: "Paul recognises the social, medical and economic advantages to the constituency that legalisation would bring - in particular the cultivation of the plant for local production of cheaper and environmentally-friendly fuel and a natural medicine. "Paul is aware that cannabis, also known as hemp, can be used to make cheap and environmentally-friendly fuel, plastics, paper and so on, on a local basis. Orkney and Shetland would be ideal for this and would boost farmers' incomes, employment and the economy. "This campaign is also very much in memory of the late Biz Ivol, resident of Orkney and MS sufferer who was arrested and taken to court for growing cannabis and using it to make chocolate to ease her suffering and that of others whom she supplied free of charge through the post. "I first met Biz last year when several of us travelled from across the country to visit her during her trial. The trial had been dropped during the evening we were travelling and we discovered the next day that Biz had attempted suicide after her trial was halted and before she was able to have her say. "She told me then that she was heartbroken that she was not given an adequate defence and that she would like to stand for the LCA in the elections. However, that chance was taken away from her. She was a quite remarkable lady and Paul is an excellent candidate to stand in her memory." The other candidates who will be fighting the Orkney and Shetland seat are: Frank Nairn (Conservative), Brian Nugent (Free Scotland), Scott Dyble (UK Independence), Richard Meade (Labour), Alistair Carmichael (Liberal Democrat), John Mowat (SNP) and John Aberdein (Scottish Socialist).
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