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Thursday, July 11, 2002

Home Secretary David Blunkett told Parliament that effective next July cannabis would be downgraded from a class B to a class C drug, putting it on a par with anti-depressants and steroids, and that police would simply caution those caught with it, although they also would confiscate the substance.

But even before Blunkett's announcement, Keith Hellawell, the adviser Prime Minister Tony Blair hired to lead his government's war against drugs, resigned in protest. Decriminalizing marijuana "is giving the wrong messages to parents and children," he said.

"How on earth can you justify messages which appear to soften the approach?" Hellawell said in a British Broadcasting Corp. radio interview after he was alerted about the government's intention.

Blunkett said that "all controlled drugs are harmful and will remain illegal," but the move on pot would allow authorities to "concentrate our efforts on the drugs that cause the most harm while sending a credible message to young people."

Police Wanted It

The government has come under pressure from police authorities, including the Metropolitan Police and Association of Chief Police Officers, which have complained that too much time is spent dealing with pot smokers and not enough on dealing with harder drugs.

London has about the same population as New York City, at just short of 8 million, but it has far fewer police officers, about 26,700 compared with more than 38,000 in the U.S. metropolis.

A spokesman for the police chiefs said their organization "supports this initiative, of course, as a way to better utilize resources."

Scotland Yard declined immediate comment, but it had previously gone on record supporting the government action on cannabis when it was first outlined last October.

Blunkett said that despite its downgrading to class C, "it is important to remember that cannabis is a harmful substance that still requires strict controls to be maintained." He added that he also had "no intention of either decriminalizing or legalizing the production, supply or possession of cannabis."

He said his action on marijuana was prompted because its current classification "is disproportionate to the harm that it causes." But he added that "we will not legalize or decriminalize any drugs," he said, "nor do we envisage a time when this will be appropriate."

The home secretary made no mention of whether his decision might also be in response to calls by some medical doctors and researchers for a relaxation of the rules governing cannabis on grounds that it is useful in treatment of some medical conditions such as glaucoma.

Although those caught in possession of cannabis will get off with a warning, police and the courts will come down even harder on dealers. Blunkett said he was raising the maximum sentence for dealers in class B and C drugs, including cannabis, from five years to 14 years.

The Home Office warned that "cannabis cafes," such as those in the Netherlands where the drug is sold and used openly, will not be allowed in Britain and that police would "swoop swiftly" to close them down.

'Mire'

Hellawell said that even the limited easing up on cannabis possession sets a dangerous precedent. "It creates a fog," he said. "It creates a mire where people don't know which way to go."

One London police officer was also less sanguine. "The brutal frankness," he said, "is that it is going to be really hard to deal with."

Even issuing warnings involves "unbelievable" paperwork back at the station. "It ties you up for eight hours at a time, and at the end of the day the police are not going to do it. It will be too much hassle." Meanwhile, "the dealers are still open for business."

Copyright 2002 by United Press International.

All rights reserved.

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