Government Advisory Group: Cannabis Should Remain Class C

The official body which advises the government has deemed that Cannabis should remain a Class C drug, it has been reported.

The government asked The Advisory Council on the Misuse of Drugs to assess the legal classification of the drug in the light of alleged stronger forms of cannabis emerging on the street.

Although the advisory group are yet to confirm or deny their decision, the BBC understands that cannabis shall still remain Class C. This is in stark contrast with Prime Minister Gordon Brown’s believed opinion that the plant should become Class B once again.

Cannabis was demoted to Class C in January 2004 in order to free up police time and allow them to target those who traffic harder drugs. This meant that people caught in possession could get away with a warning rather than face criminal proceedings.

The government decision has been hotly debated ever since.

Mental health charity Sane have denounced the believed decision saying that it sends out the wrong message to drug users. The charity’s chief executive Marjorie Wallace said that stronger forms of the drug like skunk can cause paranoia, hallucinations and even psychotic breakdowns.

"Young people are literally dicing with their minds and futures," she told the BBC.

"If you have ever seen someone who has taken heavy cannabis and gone on a trip from which they have never really returned, and you have seen the collateral damage to them and their families, then you have to look at it from that point of view."

However, Steve Rolles, of the Transform Drugs Policy Foundation, claims that harsher sentences will do little to deter people from using cannabis, saying: "Rather than mass criminalisation of millions of young people, the best way would be to invest in effective, targeted public health education."