|
Cannabis Campaigners' Guide News Database result:
|
|
UK: What Home Office says about legalising cannabis in the UK after police chief proposes change Joel Leaver Daily Post Tuesday 23 Apr 2019 he last few months have since some fairly significant change in the lawful perception of cannabis. Regulation in November 2018 means hospital consultants in England and Wales can now prescribe cannabis-based products for medicinal use. The news was welcomed by campaigners across the country, who called for less regulation in helping to treat conditions such as epilepsy. This followed on from landmark changes in 2014, when Wales became the first country in the UK to approve Sativex - a cannabis-based oral spray to treat muscle spasms associated with multiple sclerosis. But aside from recent medical regulation, cannabis however remains a class B drug under the Misuse of Drugs Act 1971. Experts suggest that it's the most popular illegal drug in the UK with some concerned over its influence on additional criminal behaviour. As recently revealed though, Police and Crime Commissioner Arfon Jones has expressed his belief that legally controlling cannabis - as is the case with alcohol and tobacco - could help neutralise illegal markets. He said: "The best way to reduce the role of organised crime in the supply of drugs is to put it in commercial hands so people don't need to go to the illegal market." In light of his comment, North Wales Live put the suggestion to the Home Office - responsible for law and order in the UK. Here's what they had to about the potential for legalising cannabis for personal use, as well as some updates on the future of medicinal cannabis use. The Home Office's latest stance In response to calls for the deregulation of the drug, a Home Office spokesperson told us: "The Government has no plans to decriminalise recreational cannabis." They said that legalising the substance would "send the wrong message" to the vast majority of the public who don't take drugs. The spokesperson explained that this would be particularly true of youth in the country as well as vulnerable people, for whom there's a "potential grave risk of increased misuse of drugs". North Wales Live also inquired into the Home Office's plans for medicinal use of the substance. In response, the spokesman reminded that specialist doctors can already cannabis-based products "where there is clinical evidence of benefit". They added that: "To support doctors prescribing these products, we have asked the National Institute of Health and Care Excellence (NICE) to develop additional clinical guidelines." Recent developments have evidently encouraged further research into the medicinal use of cannabis - which may benefit a wider demographic of the population in the future. The NHS recently revealed that trials were already under way, including tests relating to the impact of cannabis-based products on conditions such as cancer and HIV. Additional research was also confirmed to North Wales Live by a Welsh Government spokesperson. This, they explained, includes the Advisory Council on the Misuse of Drugs (ACMD) - a UK Government commissioned initiative. The first part of its long-term review is expected to be completed in autumn, around the same period as the publication of NICE's full clinical guildelines. As well as these publications, the National Institute for Health Research (NIHR) is inviting bids for funding to carry out research into the medicinal cannabis use. The intention is that this will help to increase the evidence-base that doctors can use when deciding what to prescribe to a particular patient. https://www.dailypost.co.uk/news/uk-world-news/what-home-office-says-legalising-16148539
After you have finished reading this article you can click here to go back.
|
This page was created by the Cannabis Campaigners' Guide.
Feel free to link to this page!