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Cannabis Campaigners' Guide News Database result:
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UK: Police drop their 'softly softly' line on cannabis John Steele The Telegraph Friday 26 Jul 2002 The "softly softly" police approach to cannabis in Lambeth, south London, has effectively been reversed with the issue of tougher new operational guidelines for officers. They will now be encouraged to consider arresting those in possession of cannabis if they are smoking the drug under age, ostentatiously in public, or as part of disorderly behaviour. Over the past year, in a scheme initiated by Cdr Brian Paddick, the former head of Lambeth police, officers have been seizing cannabis and issuing warnings to those in possession, rather than making arrests. Community leaders said that, as a result, cannabis was being smoked openly and offensively and was increasingly being used by children. They said a message had gone out that police would ignore such offences, giving a green light to the use of cannabis in Brixton and the surrounding area. This week the Metropolitan Police made clear in a leaflet costing £30,000 that "cannabis is still illegal". They said that certain aggravating features in its use could lead to arrest. These include: If crime and disorder are seen to involve cannabis smoking; Openly smoking cannabis in a public place, "for example consuming cannabis while driving, blowing smoke in a police officer's face, or openly displaying cannabis in a public place"; Possession of cannabis by anyone 17 or under. The Paddick experiment ran for a year from July last year. The new rules will apply from Aug 1. In essence, the new guidelines mirror the approach set out by David Blunkett, the Home Secretary, when he announced his intention recently to reclassify cannabis "downwards" from a Class B to a Class C drug. Possession of other Class C drugs is not normally an arrestable offence. Mr Blunkett and police chiefs want arrests for possession to be the exception rather than the rule. However, Mr Blunkett accepted the argument of police chiefs that he should retain discretionary powers of arrest in "aggravated" circumstances even for possession of Class C cannabis. The Home Office hopes that the complete reclassification, and legislation needed to create arrest powers for a Class C drug, will be completed by July next year. The Association of Chief Police Officers will issue operational guidance for the 43 forces in England and Wales in the autumn. These are expected to follow the new framework in Lambeth. Brian Moore, the acting police commander in Lambeth, said of the new approach: "The aim is to explain clearly to everyone that cannabis is illegal and will remain illegal." Officers had welcomed the discretion not to have to arrest people for possession of small amounts of the drug. But many were unhappy that they were apparently being discouraged from enforcing the law when cannabis was smoked in a way that upset the community. Lambeth police sources said they welcomed an approach in which officers would be "expected" to enforce the law if cannabis were smoked in anti-social or disorderly circumstances. They added that they had stepped up activity against traffickers of Class A and Class B drugs. Kate Hoey, the MP for Vauxhall, which covers Lambeth, has been one of the strongest critics of the Paddick experiment. It had led "to increases in the number of people smoking and the number of drug dealers", she said. Miss Hoey welcomed the new approach. She said: "This really does show that what happened was that cannabis was being smoked more openly and that the pilot scheme was a disaster."
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