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Cannabis Campaigners' Guide News Database result:
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UK: Fee rise could send pot fest up in smoke
South London News
Friday 14 Feb 2003 ORGANISERS of the annual cannabis festival have accused council chiefs of 'twisting their mellow' by slapping a whopping 860 per cent rise on the fee for using Brockwell Park. Lambeth council has raised the bill for using the park for the free festival from £2,500 last year to a not-so-groovy £24,000 this year. The rise has sparked fears that the free May event will not be able to go ahead. Festival licensee Shane Collins said: "For commercial events, I do not have a huge problem with charging a lot, but not when it's free." A council spokeswoman argued the annual festival was a commercial event. She said: "It's not a community event and we have to treat it as such. We are consulting on a policy where we charge charities or small local organisations nothing or a small nominal fee. To do that, we do need to have a commercial rate for commercial events. "We are basing our figure on charging £1.20 per head. Other boroughs charge about that. It is a big jump from last year, but last year's amount was in no way commercially viable." Mr Collins denied the festival is commercial. He said: "I have been doing it for four years and I have never been paid a sausage. Everyone involved, except for security and litter-pickers, do it voluntarily."
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