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Cannabis Campaigners' Guide News Database result:
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UK: Blunkett's softer line on cannabis 'not enough'
Sean O'Neill The Telegraph
Monday 26 Jan 2004 David Blunkett, the Home Secretary, should go further than this week's legal downgrading of cannabis and decriminalise or legalise the drug, according to a survey for The Telegraph. More than 50 per cent of those questioned believed the sale and possession of cannabis - to be downgraded from a Class B drug to Class C on Thursday - should no longer be a criminal offence. The YouGov survey found 28 per cent favoured decriminalising the drug, making it a minor offence, while 23 per cent wanted full legalisation. Despite rising concern about links between cannabis and mental illness, only 43 per cent believed selling or possessing the drug should remain a criminal offence. The survey of more than 2,500 people was one of the largest polls on public attitudes to drugs. A majority of those questioned - 52 per cent - expressed approval of the Home Secretary's decision to reclassify cannabis. The survey revealed, however, that 44 per cent of people regard cannabis as "seriously addictive". But almost a third said alcohol was a greater problem in society than drugs. Prof John Henry of Imperial College, a leading drugs expert, said the survey appeared to betray a lack of awareness about the adverse health effects of cannabis and its role as a "gateway" drug. "There would not be a drugs problem if people did not start on drugs, but the Government seems to be saying to young people 'Hey, it's OK to try this drug'," he said. "This is a dangerous time to be relaxing the law. Cannabis is a relatively new drug, there are more users and it is getting stronger. But we don't have enough experience or data to know what the long-term effects are. There are heart and lung problems similar to those created by tobacco and there is a definite link with schizophrenia. "At a time when tobacco smoking is being clamped down on, it seems contradictory to be lifting the lid off cannabis." Addaction, the drug treatment charity, said the poll reflected "a shift in understanding" to supporting a proportionate response to different drugs. Rosie Brocklehurst, a spokesman for Addaction, said she was worried about "confusing messages" coming from different police forces about enforcement of the new cannabis law. "The majority of people seem to understand why cannabis should be reclassified," she said. "Many have had the experience of how damaging the postcode lottery in enforcement has been. Young peoples' lives are blighted for ever when they are forced into the criminal justice system and through it some are coerced into a harder drug culture."
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