Police chief says cannabis law legitimises drug use

One of the country's most senior police officers has broken ranks over the classification of cannabis following a series of high-profile drug-induced murders.

Merseyside's chief constable, Bernard Hogan-Howe, has slammed the Government's softly-softly approach and called for a U-turn on the Class C status of the drug.

The call comes a day after cannabis addict Thomas Palmer was jailed for life by Reading Crown Court for murdering two friends in a drug-induced state.

Palmer, 20, who will serve a minimum 20 years in jail for the killings near Wokingham in 2005, first tried cannabis at the age of 14 and was smoking the drug every day by the time he turned 15.

Mr Hogan-Howe said: "While tackling Class A drugs is a priority for forces across the country, this reclassification of cannabis has almost legitimised it in the public perception. But cannabis is not legitimate, it remains illegal and its cultivation is a serious criminal offence." Citing recent research, Mr Hogan-Howe said that the increasing strength of the drug was leading to "high incidence" of schizophrenia.

"Cannabis is not the harmless substance some people believe it to be. This new super-strength cannabis is creating problems now.

"The legacy of people taking this drug today could well be felt for generations to come," he said.