Home Secretary 'to press' on with cannabis reclassification » Central government » 24dash.com

Home Secretary Jacqui Smith is today expected to press on with plans for the reclassification of cannabis in response to a review of the drug.

The Advisory Council on the Misuse of Drugs (ACMD) is thought to have urged that cannabis remains class C, to which it was downgraded under Tony Blair.

But Gordon Brown is understood to be keen that the drug is reclassified to B amid particular concerns about the prevalence of the stronger "skunk" variety.

The Prime Minister wants youngsters to be in no doubt the Government does not approve of cannabis use, after protests that its class C status sent out mixed messages.

ACMD will today publish its report - which was passed to ministers last week - as Ms Smith makes a statement to MPs on the Government's stance.

The report has been compiled by a group of experts, including doctors, police, judges and drug counsellors, who are thought to have concluded that cannabis should remain class C.

Jane Harris, of the mental health charity Rethink, said reclassifying cannabis would make little difference and education is what is really needed.

She said the charity wants the Government to make it compulsory for warnings about cannabis to be put on packets of rolling paper.

"We have written to every single rolling paper company we can think of, asking them to do this as a voluntary measure and they have all said no," she told GMTV.

"What we really want is health education. The Government promised a massive public education campaign three years ago. We have seen none of that.

"When you look at smoking, they have put millions into that and it's made a difference."

Deborah Cameron, of the drug and alcohol treatment charity Addaction, said changing the classification of cannabis would do nothing to deter people from smoking it.

"The young people that we see don't think about the classification of cannabis before they smoke weed," she told Independent Radio News.

"They don't understand the system and it doesn't deter them."

She said GPs, social workers and teachers need to have more information about the harm which cannabis can cause so they can help to educate people.

She said reclassification of cannabis would "make very little difference to what is happening now".