Jim Finnel
Fallen Cannabis Warrior & Ex News Moderator
Police said last night it would be "business as usual" over cannabis arrests in Scotland amid concerns that the reclassification of the drug has deepened ambiguity over its legal status.
The change in the official classification of the drug from Class B to C and then back again has already led to confusion over its use.
Despite the reclassification, cannabis users in England and Wales will not yet be subject to the controversial "three strikes" regime because the issue must again be debated in Westminster.
From yesterday, when the classification changed, police south of the border should have been able to hand out a warning to anyone caught with cannabis for a first offence. Second-time offenders would face an UKP 80 fine and a penalty notice, and anyone with a third "strike" would be subject to arrest, an unlimited fine and a prison sentence of up to five years.
But the proposed change has been challenged and it will be debated in Westminster on Monday before a possibly amended version is introduced later next week.
The Scottish Government and the Association of Chief Police Officers in Scotland said last night there were no plans to introduce such a system here and that everyone caught with cannabis faces being reported to the Procurator Fiscal.
That stance has been consistent in Scotland and did not change even when the drug was classed down in 2004.
Home Secretary Jacqui Smith decided to move the drug from Class C to Class B last year because of fears over the impact of stronger strains of "skunk" on the mental health of young people.
Although the law and penalties are the same as England and Wales, the legal process and guidance for officers is separate in Scotland. The prevalence of cannabis factories in homes in Scotland is often said to be co-ordinated by Chinese Triad gangs
Last year it emerged that police recovered plants worth UKP 21.6m through Operation League, during which 127 people were arrested in connection with cultivating cannabis across the country.
Since the introduction in 2006 of Operation League, a national crackdown led by Strathclyde Police which targets those involved in the cultivation of cannabis, more than 160 cannabis sites have been identified and dismantled throughout Scotland.
Drugs experts last night said that the latest move in Westminster would cause confusion, particularly among young people.
Home Office Minister Alan Campbell yesterday warned the average age of first-time cannabis users is now 13.
A Scottish Government spokesman said: "The decision to reclassify cannabis was, of course, made at UK level, however our own approach to tackling cannabis has never wavered.
"Guidance to the police in Scotland from the Lord Advocate on enforcement did not change, and we have been consistent in highlighting that the drug is both illegal and dangerous to health. It will be business as usual' for the police. People caught in possession of cannabis continue to be reported to the fiscal."
Professor Neil McKeganey, director of Glasgow University's Centre for Drugs Misuse Research, said: "The changes that have been discussed in England quite frankly add to the confusion. It is positive that we in Scotland have continued to treat this consistently, particularly as it is the most widely used illegal drug and is often the drug which young people start to use, and you wouldn't want to have a confusing layer of policies."
Alistair Ramsay, of educational consultancy Drugwise, said that the message should be consistent for young people across the UK.
News Hawk: User: 420 MAGAZINE ® - Medical Marijuana Publication & Social Networking
Source: Herald, The (UK)
Copyright: 2009 The Western Morning News Co. Ltd
Contact: postbag@eveningherald.co.uk
Website: Plymouth news, sport, leisure and entertainment
Author: Brian Donnelly
The change in the official classification of the drug from Class B to C and then back again has already led to confusion over its use.
Despite the reclassification, cannabis users in England and Wales will not yet be subject to the controversial "three strikes" regime because the issue must again be debated in Westminster.
From yesterday, when the classification changed, police south of the border should have been able to hand out a warning to anyone caught with cannabis for a first offence. Second-time offenders would face an UKP 80 fine and a penalty notice, and anyone with a third "strike" would be subject to arrest, an unlimited fine and a prison sentence of up to five years.
But the proposed change has been challenged and it will be debated in Westminster on Monday before a possibly amended version is introduced later next week.
The Scottish Government and the Association of Chief Police Officers in Scotland said last night there were no plans to introduce such a system here and that everyone caught with cannabis faces being reported to the Procurator Fiscal.
That stance has been consistent in Scotland and did not change even when the drug was classed down in 2004.
Home Secretary Jacqui Smith decided to move the drug from Class C to Class B last year because of fears over the impact of stronger strains of "skunk" on the mental health of young people.
Although the law and penalties are the same as England and Wales, the legal process and guidance for officers is separate in Scotland. The prevalence of cannabis factories in homes in Scotland is often said to be co-ordinated by Chinese Triad gangs
Last year it emerged that police recovered plants worth UKP 21.6m through Operation League, during which 127 people were arrested in connection with cultivating cannabis across the country.
Since the introduction in 2006 of Operation League, a national crackdown led by Strathclyde Police which targets those involved in the cultivation of cannabis, more than 160 cannabis sites have been identified and dismantled throughout Scotland.
Drugs experts last night said that the latest move in Westminster would cause confusion, particularly among young people.
Home Office Minister Alan Campbell yesterday warned the average age of first-time cannabis users is now 13.
A Scottish Government spokesman said: "The decision to reclassify cannabis was, of course, made at UK level, however our own approach to tackling cannabis has never wavered.
"Guidance to the police in Scotland from the Lord Advocate on enforcement did not change, and we have been consistent in highlighting that the drug is both illegal and dangerous to health. It will be business as usual' for the police. People caught in possession of cannabis continue to be reported to the fiscal."
Professor Neil McKeganey, director of Glasgow University's Centre for Drugs Misuse Research, said: "The changes that have been discussed in England quite frankly add to the confusion. It is positive that we in Scotland have continued to treat this consistently, particularly as it is the most widely used illegal drug and is often the drug which young people start to use, and you wouldn't want to have a confusing layer of policies."
Alistair Ramsay, of educational consultancy Drugwise, said that the message should be consistent for young people across the UK.
News Hawk: User: 420 MAGAZINE ® - Medical Marijuana Publication & Social Networking
Source: Herald, The (UK)
Copyright: 2009 The Western Morning News Co. Ltd
Contact: postbag@eveningherald.co.uk
Website: Plymouth news, sport, leisure and entertainment
Author: Brian Donnelly
