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UK: Cannabis use still a priority for Gloucestershire police as other forces turn blind eye Daniel Chipperfield Gloucdster Citizen Saturday 21 May 2016 Avon and Somerset Police are now the fifth force in the UK to say it will not look to arrest people using marijuana if it is only for personal use. But Gloucestershire police have reaffirmed their position they will still arrest those caught smoking the class B drug when found. Debate has regularly surrounded the issue of people using marijuana, with some claiming the drug is largely harmless and police resources could be better spent elsewhere. What the law says about class B drug cannabis If you are under 18, you will be arrested and given a formal warning. Up to 5 years in jail, an unlimited fine or both for possession Up to 14 years in jail, an unlimited fine or both for supplying or dealing An Avon and Somerset Police spokesman said they will not target smokers "unless it creates a more harmful situation and endangers vulnerable people". But they added they will still crack down on those who produce and sell it or smoke it in front of schools and children. A spokesman said: "These cultivation sites are taken very seriously as they can often involve vulnerable people being forced to grow cannabis against their will." They follow the Durham, Derbyshire, Dorset and Surrey forces in taking the lenient stance. But Gloucestershire police will not be so lenient. A spokesman for Gloucestershire police said: "Possession of cannabis is still illegal and therefore any offender caught will be penalised." The Met Police has previously experimented with ignoring cannabis use in Lambeth to focus on serious crime. But Tessa Webb from drugs charity The Nelson Trust said Gloucestershire police were right to continue the hard line approach. "We want society to be completely drug free," she said. "The people that come to us often have addictions to more than one drug as well as alcohol. "With drugs one can quite easily lead to another. Most of our clients have experimented with all of them. It can be a vicious circle. "We work with the police to help people and understand they are under-resourced but we are an abstinence charity and don't think there should be any drugs in society." http://www.gloucestercitizen.co.uk/Cannabis-use-priority-Gloucestershire-police/story-29301676-detail/story.html
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