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Cannabis Campaigners' Guide News Database result:
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UK: Unease among regional forces
Nick Hopkins The Guardian
Wednesday 24 Oct 2001 Police unease at David Blunkett's move to downgrade cannabis from a class B to a class C drug began to simmer yesterday, as senior officers assessed the impact on anti-drugs initiatives and stop and search procedures. While the biggest force, the Metropolitan police, welcomed Mr Blunkett's announcement on Tuesday, some smaller constabularies in England and Wales were markedly cooler, reflecting differences in attitude to the drug. Cliff Dixon, assistant chief constable of Bedfordshire, said the change had "not been given enough thought" and that the home secretary might regret it in years to come. He suggested the change undermined the arrest referral and preventative education work his force had developed. Lincolnshire, which has always taken a hard line on cannabis possession, said it would enforce any change in the law with integrity, but cautioned that "clearly, there is a lot of consultation still to be undertaken" - police speak, it seems, for "we haven't made up our mind". Robin Searle, assistant chief constable of Nottinghamshire, said his force would look at the proposals with care. However, cannabis was "a dangerous drug, a gateway to harder drugs, is more carcinogenic than ordinary tobacco, and causes hallucinations which may lead to psychological problems". His attitude was shared by officers in other regional forces opposed to the Met's softened approach to cannabis possession, piloted in Lambeth earlier this year. "A lot of forces are sitting on the fence about cannabis reclassification, waiting to see the detail," said a police source. For the time being, many forces are adhering to the carefully worded response of the Association of Chief Police Officers. It did not give unqualified support to the change, but welcomed the home secretary's decision "to explore [the reclassification] further by seeking advice from scientific and medical experts. Acpo feels this will ensure that the fullest of considerations has been given to this proposal before a final decision can be made by government." One concern is stop and search: police will no longer have the power to arrest anyone in the street for cannabis possession, and prosecutions will be by court summons. Officers have argued that arrests disrupt drugs markets, and often exposes other wrongdoing. The Police Foundation inquiry into drugs dismissed the argument in a report last year, pointing to the "unwelcome consequences" for relations between the police and the public created by over-use of stop and search.
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