cannabisnews.com: Media Smoked Up as Britain Goes Soft on Cannabis Media Smoked Up as Britain Goes Soft on Cannabis Posted by CN Staff on July 11, 2002 at 17:10:24 PT By Jeremy Lovell Source: Reuters British media took a dim view on Thursday of the government's decision to ease penalties on cannabis users in the face of a dramatic rise in the drug's use. Home Secretary David Blunkett, confirming months of speculation, told parliament Wednesday cannabis would be downgraded to a Class C drug, putting it in the same category as anabolic steroids and growth hormones. Britons, among the heaviest users of weed in Europe, will soon be able to own and smoke small quantities in private without fear of prosecution as a result of the law change. "Blunkett gambles with our children," thundered the Sun tabloid across its front page. "The Home Secretary is taking one of the biggest risks of his career," it added in an editorial. Opposition politicians accused the Labor government of sending mixed messages to the young, making it unclear whether the government believed smoking dope was good or bad. The government was downgrading but not decriminalizing possession or usage. At the same time it was doubling to 10 years the possible jail term for dealing in cannabis, they noted. The Times took a somewhat calmer but nonetheless damning view of the announcement that follows a trial of softened police approach to the drug in the crime-ridden south London suburb of Brixton. "The Blunkett formula is not entirely inconsistent, merely hypocritical," it said in an editorial. "It is very unlikely to be dangerous, but it is quite unnecessarily muddled." The right-leaning Daily Telegraph simply wrote off the government initiative as "Dopey policy." "Blunkett is trying to get the best of both worlds. Unfortunately, he seems much more likely to end up with the worst," it added. A report published late last year showed cannabis is the most commonly used illegal drug in the 15-nation European Union, with at least 1 in 10 adults in the bloc having used it. Some 5 million people in Britain regularly use cannabis, and government data shows its use has risen sharply over the past two decades. "Spliffing!" observed the Daily Mirror tabloid. "It is hard to over-estimate the magnitude of this error, the lethal threat it poses to our children, and the depth of ignorance and sheer willful irresponsibility that it represents on the part of the government," the Daily Mail said. But the left-leaning Guardian rode to the rescue of Blunkett, praising his foresight and courage in bowing to the inevitable. "Blunkett the brave," it headlined its editorial. "The minister has declined to downgrade Ecstasy from categories A to B, as reformers wanted, but Blunkett has made a good start." Source: ReutersAuthor: Jeremy Lovell Published: Thursday, July 11, 2002Copyright: 2002 ReutersRelated Articles:Tough-on-Drugs Britain Softens Line on Marijuanahttp://cannabisnews.com/news/thread13378.shtmlBritain to Stop Arresting Most Users of Marijuanahttp://cannabisnews.com/news/thread13368.shtmlBritain Loosens Up on Pot http://cannabisnews.com/news/thread13367.shtmlCannabisNews Articles -- Cannabis - UKhttp://cannabisnews.com/thcgi/search.pl?K=+cannabis+uk Home Comment Email Register Recent Comments Help Comment #5 posted by p4me on July 11, 2002 at 22:08:24 PT Ireland and Nol Van Schaik I still wonder what is going on in Ireland and for that matter Iceland. They are both European by geographics. I do not know much about Iceland but I do not that alcoholism is as bad there as anywhere in the world out there on some cold island. But it takes me in the direction of fairyland to think about being first to legalize cannabis. Ireland is in place to take the prize because of not being bound by the UN Single Convention. There are plenty of people in Canada hoping to lead the world to legalization. I am thankful that we have the internet because it allows voices to carry across the world that may otherwise be silenced. One voice that has something to say about the class C announcement was Nol Van Schaik at the DE messageboard this July 11th. Nol posted:Sent to all press i could reach : Comment on the new UK cannabispolicy.Haarlem, the Netherlands, July 11, 2002.Blunkett’s Law supports organised crime !New Law creates monopoly for streetdealers.You do not have to be a professor to see that the announced change in Law on Cannabis will not have any effect on the decrease of crime in the UK. The intended goal of the reclassification of cannabis to Class C, was to get more PC’s available to fight organised crime, who have the trade in all drugs in a firm grip for decades, with all involved threats and dangers to society.Under the new Cannabislaw, wich will become active in July, 2003, you should no longer be arrested for smoking a joint, in the privacy of your home, but not with underaged children present. Yet, the penalty for possessing or using cannabis for social purposes, without a clear limited quantity, will be 2 years imprisonment, if the Police chooses to prosecute a potsmoker, with or without being arrested for it. Blunkett & Co intend to go tougher on people that supply others with cannabis, the penalty for forfilling the UK’s demand for cannabis, is increased to a maximum of 14 years, or is it 10, that did not become quite clear. Cannabiscafe’s or –shops will not be allowed under the new Law, as they are supposed to be suppliers of cannabis, and will be punished likewise : 10 – 14 years imprisonment for those who would !This implicates that the government has left no room for doubt, the distribution of cannabis will not be regulated through licensed outlets. There is no special Law on growing cannabis, but they will probably be considered as suppliers of cannabis : 10 – 14 years imprisonment. These penalties will stop a lot of entrepeneurs-to-be from carrying out their plans to open a cannabisshop in their area, and I can hardly blame them !Organised crime, the intended target of Blunkett’s efforts of the last 9 months or so, will not be impressed by the stiff cannabispenalties, wich will dissolve in the penalties they might get on being caught for trafficking and trading in Class A and B drugs as well. I guess the gangs that are in the ABC trade for decades now, feel like Blunkett gave them some kind of Branche-protection, by ruling out any possible competition, growers and eventual cannabisshops. The potsmoker, who should benefit from Blunkett’s move, will still have to buy their low-grade cannabis from shady figures that are also involved in dealing Class A and B substances, from a different pocket. Many cannabisgrowers will stop growing, enlarging the marketshare for organised crime, who will import more low grade soapbar-hash to pollute their customers. The use of cannabis in general will increase, not because more people will start using it, but the present smokers will start using it more often, the threat of prosecution is taken of their mind. Another increase in business for organised crime, who will be very pleased with their monopoly on the UK drugmarket.Blunkett and all his commissions must have thought of this, I suppose, it will surely be part of some special tactics, if not, they messed up big time ! Governments made prohibition, prohibition made organised crime, now, a new form of prohibition is boosting organised crime…Besides this major flaw, there is another downside, the new Law will cause a lot of arrests of people that supply or grow cannabis, if the plan works out. Where is the government going to put all the growers and suppliers of cannabis that it intends to arrest, and lock up for years, the UK prisonsystem is a few days away from being on full capacity. This will cost a lot of money, more than the 50 million pounds saved by no longer prosecuting the personal use of cannabis.There can only be one conclusion, the upcoming change of Law will not have the intended effect, on the contrary, it benefits organised crime, and will cost the community more than ever before, it does seem to create a lot of jobs though, for prison wards…Coffeeshops, excluded in Blunkett’s scheme, however, would separate the trade in cannabis from the trade in Class A and B drugs, and would offer good quality cannabis, for a fair price, in a safe enviroment They would also employ staff , pay businessrates, rent, and all other duties involved, wich would make the money end back up in the UK society, without taking anything out of it. Instead of responding to the need of cannabisoutlets, the UK will have to start building more prisons, out of a budget that will not be able to cover it.The taxpayer looses, as usual.Nol van Schaik, Softdrugssalesman. With Colin Davies, co-founder of the Dutch Experience coffeeshop, Stockport, UK. www.dutchexperience.org www.globalhempmuseum.nl__________________ Come on, well payed politicians, is this a yes or a no ? Can I smoke and can I grow ? [ Post Comment ] Comment #4 posted by FoM on July 11, 2002 at 20:08:27 PT Related Article from the UK Dope Law Benefits Dealers http://www.thesun.co.uk/article/0,,2-2002320293,00.html [ Post Comment ] Comment #3 posted by Jose Melendez on July 11, 2002 at 19:20:24 PT can you say, eyes wide shut? FRAUD ALERT! DEA INFECTS HOLLYWOOD http://ap.tbo.com/ap/breaking/MGAPT3IAJ3D.html [ Post Comment ] Comment #2 posted by E_Johnson on July 11, 2002 at 18:45:32 PT Tell King Kaufman he's a shithead for saying this The pundits who think All-Star interruptus was worse than the game in which Ted Williams broke his elbow need to take a drug test.Nobody needs to take a drug test, especially not because they disagree with you.http://salon.com/news/sports/col/kaufman/2002/07/11/all_star/index.htmlHere's his emal address:mailto:king salon.com [ Post Comment ] Comment #1 posted by FoM on July 11, 2002 at 17:37:51 PT Articles From The Mirror UK Mirror UK http://www.mirror.co.uk/news/ TOUCH OF CLASS C http://www.mirror.co.uk/news/allnews/page.cfm?objectid=12024153&method=full&siteid=50143 ROUTLEDGE'S VERDICT ON DRUGS POLICY http://www.mirror.co.uk/news/allnews/page.cfm?objectid=12024154&method=full&siteid=50143 HELLAWELL: DRUGS SPIN WORRIES ME http://www.mirror.co.uk/news/allnews/page.cfm?objectid=12024164&method=full&siteid=50143 [ Post Comment ] Post Comment