Chief Constable right to speak out on cannabis

Full credit to West Yorkshire Police Chief Constable Sir Norman Bettison for having the courage to speak out against the Labour Government’s decision to declassify cannabis.

Speaking in a weekend newspaper interview, Sir Norman said the Government's move was “a mistake” which had led to confusion in the community about whether it was still an offence to use the substance.

“Declassification meant the power of arrest was taken away from the police,” he said. “It took away the opportunity for the police to jump on it. I would encourage the Government, in its current review, to reclassify it as a class B drug.”

The strength of this argument is evidenced by the fact that more than £1.2 million of super-strength cannabis has been seized across Bradford district in recent weeks.

This operation also included the confiscation of more than 200 cannabis plants at a house in Keighley.

Instead of wasting more time waiting for the review to reach its inevitable conclusion, I believe the Government should move immediately to reverse its reckless decision to declassify and allow the police to get on with their job.