Source: Taunton Times, UK

Pub Date: 22 August 2002

Cannabis Cafe? Not yet in Taunton.

A Cannabis Café will not be opening in Taunton as long as the supply of the drug remains illegal, the leader of Somerset County Council has declared.

The policy announcement comes after pressure from a local campaigner who intends to stand at the next general election for the Legalise Cannabis Alliance.

Mike Cottee of Taunton wrote to the head of the Liberal Democrat-controlled council calling for a change in how the law is applied across the county, ahead of the nationwide down-grading of cannabis to a class C drug next July.

But Cathy Bakewell responded: "The idea of cannabis cafes is not one that the council would like to pursue. This is because there are too many inconsistencies as the law stands at present, where the supply remains illegal and is effectively distributed by criminal hands, making the issue simply too 'fudged'.

Mr Cottee, however, claims a café could sell homegrown products and plans to start a local petition in the next few weeks to muster public support.

"I expected them to sit on the fence a little on this particular policy in Somerset but, if enough pressure is brought to bear on the council, it's going to be interesting to see their response," he said.

His campaign has picked up speed following the recent success of a pilot scheme in the London borough of Lambeth, where people found in possession of cannabis were verbally warned instead of arrested. The move freed up more police resources and led to a 35 per cent fall in street crime.

A recent UN report has also shown Britain to have one of the worst drug problems in Europe - it found the average age of a heroin addict in Holland is 35, while in England it is 21.

The figures strengthen the LCA's argument that, instead of criminalizing cannabis use, politicians and police should focus on severing the line of supply between hard and soft drugs.

Attempts to encourage national debate on the issue put Stockport on the map earlier this year, when it became the scene for the opening of the country's first ever cannabis café. Mr Cottee himself was wrongly arrested for smoking tobacco with hemp cigarette papers and it was only after two court appearances that magistrates realised their mistake.

A total of 29 people involved in that protest campaign have pleaded not guilty to charges of either possession of cannabis or possession with intent to supply. The crown court trails, and the police operations on the café, are expected to cost the British taxpayer about £1.5 million.

Mr Cottee feels his party's cause has been helped further by a softening of media opinion over the last few years. A sea of change occurred after Anne Widdecombe condemned the use of cannabis in the same week that shadow cabinet members admitted to having smoked the drug.

"The views on drugs in general have shifted so far. I got involved in campaigning only a year ago and that was because I could see the tide changing." Mr Cottee added.

Cllr Bakewell pointed out that her party has already voted for changes to international law and for hard drug addicts to be dealt with by the health system and not the courts. She added: "It is a nonsense to imprison an innocent victim in this way and places and unnecessary burden on the judiciary."

But their decision in spring to call for the legalisation of cannabis will not extend to Dutch-style cafes being given the green light in Somerset.

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